The Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Regulations 1988

Annex 1 or annex 2 application received by Secretary of State without environmental statement

15.—(1) Where the Secretary of State considers that an application which is being determined by him by virtue of section 32 or section 33 is an application to which regulation 6 applies, or a reporter so considers, but it is not accompanied by an environmental statement, the Secretary of State may, within 4 weeks beginning with the date on which he received the application or such longer period as he may reasonably require, direct giving his reasons that consideration of environmental information in respect of the proposed development is required before planning permission could be granted for the proposed development.

(2) Where the Secretary of State makes a direction under paragraph (1), he shall—

(a) inform the planning authority and the other authorities mentioned in Schedule 4,—

(i) of the requirement for an environmental statement;

(ii) that they may be required to make available to the applicant, in accordance with regulation 23, any information in their possession which they or the applicant consider relevant to the preparation of the environmental statement; and

(b) inform the applicant or appellant—

(i) of what he has done under subparagraph (a),

(ii) of his view that the applicant or appellant should provide an environmental statement,

(iii) that the planning authority is a body required under regulation 23 to provide the applicant with any relevant information in their possession, and

(iv) that he shall supply the authorities, bodies or persons mentioned in Schedule 4 and the planning authority, with such further information about the proposed development as they may request.

(3) The applicant or appellant as the case may be may, within 4 weeks beginning with the date of the direction, notify the Secretary of State in writing that he proposes to provide an environmental statement and, if the Secretary of State is not so notified, he or the reporter shall not make a determination other than by refusal of planning permission and at the end of the said period of 4 weeks may inform the applicant or appellant in writing that no further action is being taken.

(4) Where the Secretary of State is notified under paragraph (3) that an environmental statement is to be provided, he shall inform the planning authority for the area in which the land to which the application relates is situated.