The Town and Country Planning (Enforcement) (Hearings Procedure) (Wales) Rules 2003

Hearing statements

5.—(1) The appellant and the local planning authority must ensure that, within 6 weeks of the starting date, 2 copies of their hearing statement are received by the National Assembly.

(2) The National Assembly may in writing require the appellant and the local planning authority to provide such further information about the matters contained in their hearing statement as it may specify; such information must be provided in writing and the appellant or the local planning authority, as the case may be, must ensure that 2 copies are received by the National Assembly within such period as the National Assembly may reasonably require.

(3) Any person who made representations to the local planning authority about the appeal or who was notified about the appeal, must ensure that the National Assembly receives 3 copies of any written comments they wish to make concerning the appeal within 6 weeks of the starting date.

(4) The appellant and the local planning authority must ensure that the National Assembly receives 2 copies of any comments the local planning authority and the appellant wish to make on—

(a) each other’s hearing statement;

(b) comments made pursuant to paragraph (3); and

(c) comments made to them by any other person,

within 9 weeks of the starting date.

(5) The National Assembly must send, as soon as practicable after receipt, a copy of any—

(a) hearing statement received by it pursuant to paragraph (1), further information provided pursuant to paragraph (2) and any comments received pursuant to paragraph (4) from, in each case, the appellant or the local planning authority to the other of those two parties; and

(b) written comments made by persons pursuant to paragraph (3), to the local planning authority and the appellant.

(6) The local planning authority must give any person who so requests a reasonable opportunity to inspect, and where practicable, take copies of—

(a) the local planning authority’s completed questionnaire, hearing statement and any document copied to the authority under paragraph (5); and

(b) further information provided by the authority under paragraph (2) and comments made by the authority under paragraph (4),

and must specify in their hearing statement the time and place where such documents may be inspected.

(7) The National Assembly must send to the inspector, as soon as practicable after receipt, any hearing statement, document, part of any document or written comments received by the National Assembly within the relevant period specified for receiving such documents pursuant to paragraphs (1) to (4).

(8) In the case of a non-transferred appeal, the National Assembly, and in the case of a transferred appeal, the inspector, may in determining the appeal disregard any comments made pursuant to paragraphs (3) and (4) which are received after the relevant specified period.