24.—(1) The Secretary of State may apply to the court where a developer is carrying out, or has carried out, a project —
(a)without the Secretary of State's agreement to the grant of consent; or
(b)in breach of a condition attached to the Secretary of State's agreement to the grant of consent.
(2) Where paragraph (1) applies, and subject to paragraph (3), the court may make an order—
(a)restraining the carrying out of the project or particular aspects of the project;
(b)compelling the performance of any act required to be done by a condition attached to the Secretary of State's agreement to the grant of consent;
(c)requiring the removal, so far as is practicable in all the circumstances, of any installation erected or located—
(i)without the Secretary of State's agreement to the grant of consent; or
(ii)in breach of a condition attached to the Secretary of State's agreement to the grant of consent;
(d)where it orders the removal of any installation, requiring the reinstatement of the site where the installation was erected or located.
(3) The court shall not grant an order under this regulation in respect of a breach of any condition attached to the Secretary of State's agreement to the grant of consent where—
(a)the breach in question was due to circumstances beyond the control of the developer and the breach could not reasonably have been prevented by the developer; or
(b)the breach occurred as a result of anything required to be done as a matter of urgency for the purposes of securing the safety of any person.
(4) Where the developer fails to comply with the terms of an order made pursuant to paragraph (2) within such time as may be specified in it or, if no such time is specified, within a reasonable time of the making of the order, the Secretary of State may take the action required to be taken by the order and the reasonable costs and expenses of doing so are recoverable as a debt from the developer.
(5) Where the Secretary of State takes action pursuant to paragraph (4), that action is without prejudice to any consequences which may flow from the developer's failure to comply with the order.
(6) In this regulation—
(a)“the court” means—
(i)regarding a project in the English area, the High Court in England;
(ii)regarding a project in the Scottish area, the Court of Session;
(iii)regarding a project in the Northern Irish area, the High Court in Northern Ireland;
(b)“the English area”, “the Scottish area” and “the Northern Irish area” have the same meanings as in the Civil Jurisdiction (Offshore Activities) Order 1987 M1.
(7) Where a project is situated in more than one of the areas referred to in paragraph (6)(b), any of the courts having jurisdiction in those areas has jurisdiction in relation to any question arising under this regulation.
Commencement Information
I1Reg. 24 in force at 31.12.2020 immediately before 11 p.m., see reg. 1(1)
Marginal Citations
M1S.I. 1987/2197. There are no relevant amendments.