- Latest available (Revised)
- Original (As enacted)
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, Section 42 is up to date with all changes known to be in force on or before 04 September 2024. There are changes that may be brought into force at a future date. Changes that have been made appear in the content and are referenced with annotations.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. Changes and effects are recorded by our editorial team in lists which can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area. Where those effects have yet to be applied to the text of the legislation by the editorial team they are also listed alongside the legislation in the affected provisions. Use the ‘more’ link to open the changes and effects relevant to the provision you are viewing.
Whole provisions yet to be inserted into this Act (including any effects on those provisions):
(1)[F1A National Park authority] may, if satisfied that it is expedient to do so, by order apply subsection (2) to any land which is comprised in [F2the relevant Park] and which appears to them to consist of or include moor or heath.
(2)Subject to subsection (3), no person shall—
(a)by ploughing or otherwise convert into agricultural land any land to which this subsection applies and which is moor or heath which has not been agricultural land at any time within the preceding 20 years; or
(b)carry out on any such land any other agricultural operation or any forestry operation which (in either case) appears to [F3the National Park authority] to be likely to affect its character or appearance and is specified in the order applying this subsection to that land.
(3)Subsection (2) shall not apply in relation to any operation carried out, or caused or permitted to be carried out, by the owner or occupier of the land if—
(a)one of them has, after the coming into force of the order, given the [F4National Park authority] written notice of a proposal to carry out the operation, specifying its nature and the land on which it is proposed to carry it out; and
(b)one of the conditions specified in subsection (4) is satisfied.
(4)The said conditions are—
(a)that the [F4National Park authority] have given their consent to the carrying out of the operation;
(b)where that authority have neither given nor refused their consent, that three months have expired from the giving of the notice; and
(c)where that authority have refused their consent, that twelve months have expired from the giving of the notice.
(5)A person who, without reasonable excuse, contravenes subsection (2) shall be liable—
(a)on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum;
(b)on conviction on indictment, to a fine.
(6)Where the [F4National Park authority] are given notice under this section in respect of any land, the authority shall forthwith send copies of the notice to [F5Natural England] .
(7)In considering for the purposes of this section whether land has been agricultural land within the preceding 20 years, no account shall be taken of any conversion of the land into agricultural land which was unlawful under the provisions of this section or section 14 of the 1968 Act.
[F6(8)An order under this section shall be made by statutory instrument and the Statutory Instruments Act 1946 shall apply to such an instrument as if the order had been made by a Minister of the Crown.]
(9)The said section 14 (which is superseded by this section) shall cease to have effect; but this section shall have effect as if any order under that section in force immediately before the coming into force of this section had been made under this section.
Textual Amendments
F1Words in s. 42(1) substituted (1.10.2006) by Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (c. 16), ss. 63(2)(a), 107; S.I. 2006/2541, art. 2
F2Words in s. 42(1) substituted (1.10.2006) by Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (c. 16), ss. 63(2)(b), 107; S.I. 2006/2541, art. 2
F3Words in s. 42(2)(b) substituted (1.10.2006) by Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (c. 16), ss. 63(3), 107; S.I. 2006/2541, art. 2
F4Words in s. 42 substituted (1.4.1996) by 1995 c. 25, s. 78, Sch. 10 para. 22(3) (with ss. 7(6), 115, Sch. 8 para. 7); S.I. 1995/2950, art. 3(1)(2)
F5Words in s. 42(6) substituted (1.10.2006) by Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (c. 16), ss. 63(4), 107; S.I. 2006/2541, art. 2
F6S. 42(8) substituted (1.10.2006) by Natural Environment and Rural Communities Act 2006 (c. 16), ss. 63(5), 107; S.I. 2006/2541, art. 2
Modifications etc. (not altering text)
C2S. 42(2) applied by S.I. 1991/1616, art. 2
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: