The Gas (Northern Ireland) Order 1996

PART I N.I. COMPULSORY ACQUISITION OF LAND BY LICENCE HOLDERS

1.—(1) Where a licence holder proposes to acquire, otherwise than by agreement, any land required for any purpose connected with the carrying on of the activities which he is authorised by his licence to carry on, he may apply to the Department for an order ( “a vesting order”) vesting that land in him and the Department shall have power to make a vesting order. N.I.

(2) The power of acquiring land compulsorily under this paragraph includes power to acquire, by the creation of a new right, an easement or other right over land.

2.—(1) No application shall be made under paragraph 1 for a vesting order in respect of land belonging to another licence holder except with the consent of the Director.

(2) The Director shall not give his consent under this paragraph if—

(a) the land is being used by the licence holder to whom it belongs for the purposes of an installation necessary for the carrying on of the activities which he is authorised by his licence to carry on; or

(b) it appears to the Director that the land will be so used and that the use will commence, or any necessary planning permission under Part IV of the [1991 NI 11.] Planning (Northern Ireland) Order 1991 will be applied for, within the period of 5 years from the date of the application for his consent.

(3) The Department may, by order, provide that sub-paragraph (2) shall have effect as if for the period mentioned in head (b) there were substituted such other period as may be specified in the order.

(4) A consent under this paragraph which is not acted on within the period of 6 months from the day on which it is granted shall cease to have effect at the end of that period.

3.—(1) The power to make a vesting order under paragraph 1 in respect of land— N.I.

(a) which is the property of any public body which has power under any statutory provision to acquire land compulsorily; or

(b) which is declared by or under any statutory provision to be inalienable;

shall not, where representations objecting to the proposal for making the order have been duly made by the owner of the land and have not been withdrawn, be exercised in relation to that land unless the proposal for making the order has been approved by a resolution of the Assembly.

(2) In this paragraph “public body” means a body established by or under any statutory provision.

4.—(1) Nothing in this Schedule shall authorise the acquisition, without the consent of the Department of the Environment, of any land on or in which there is, to the knowledge of the Department, any historic monument or archaeological object. N.I.

(2) In this paragraph “historic monument” and “archaeological object” have the same meanings as in the [1995 NI 9.] Historic Monuments and Archaeological Objects (Northern Ireland) Order 1995.

5.—(1) Where a licence holder has acquired any land under paragraph 1, he shall not dispose of it except with the consent of the Director. N.I.

(2) A consent under this paragraph may be subject to such conditions as appear to the Director to be requisite or expedient.

6.  Schedule 6 to the [1972 c. 9 (N.I.).] Local Government Act (Northern Ireland) 1972 shall apply for the purposes of the acquisition of land by means of a vesting order made under paragraph 1 in the same manner as it applies to the acquisition of land by means of a vesting order made under that Act subject to the following modifications— N.I.

(a) for any reference to the council there shall be substituted a reference to the licence holder;

(b) for any reference to the Department concerned there shall be substituted a reference to the Department;

(c) for any reference to that Act there shall be substituted a reference to this Order;

(d) in paragraph 6(2) for the words from “the fund” onwards there shall be substituted “ funds of the licence holder (in this Schedule referred to as the compensation fund”), and shall be discharged by payments made by the licence holder”; and

(e) in paragraph 12(2) for “the clerk of the council” there shall be substituted “such person as may be designated for the purposes of this Schedule by the licence holder”.