The Conservation of Habitats and Species Regulations 2010

General development orders

General development orders

73.—(1) It is a condition of any planning permission granted by a general development order, whether made before or after 1st April 2010, that development which—

(a) is likely to have a significant effect on a European site or a European offshore marine site (either alone or in combination with other plans or projects), and

(b) is not directly connected with or necessary to the management of the site,

must not be begun until the developer has received written notification of the approval of the local planning authority under regulation 75 (approval of local planning authority).

(2) It is a condition of any planning permission granted by a general development order made before 1st April 2010 that development which—

(a) is likely to have a significant effect on a European site (either alone or in combination with other plans or projects),

(b) is not directly connected with or necessary to the management of the site, and

(c) was begun but not completed before that date,

must not be continued until the developer has received written notification of the approval of the local planning authority under regulation 75.

(3) Nothing in this regulation affects anything done pursuant to any such planning permission before 1st April 2010.

General development orders: opinion of appropriate nature conservation body

74.—(1) Where it is intended to carry out development in reliance on the permission granted by a general development order, application may be made in writing to the appropriate nature conservation body for their opinion as to whether the development is likely to have a relevant effect.

(2) The application must give details of the development which is intended to be carried out.

(3) On receiving such an application, the appropriate nature conservation body must consider whether the development is likely to have such an effect.

(4) Where they consider that they have sufficient information to conclude that the development will, or will not, have such an effect, they must notify the applicant and the local planning authority in writing of their opinion.

(5) If the appropriate nature conservation body consider that they have insufficient information to reach either of those conclusions, they must notify the applicant in writing indicating in what respects they consider the information insufficient, and the applicant may supply further information with a view to enabling them to reach a decision on the application.

(6) The opinion of the appropriate nature conservation body, notified in accordance with paragraph (4), that the development is not likely to have a relevant effect is conclusive of that question for the purpose of reliance on the planning permission granted by a general development order.

(7) In this regulation and in regulation 75 “a relevant effect” means such an effect as is mentioned in regulation 73(1)(a) or (2)(a).

General development orders: approval of local planning authority

75.—(1) An application to the local planning authority for approval, as mentioned in regulation 73 (general development orders), must—

(a) give details of the development which is intended to be carried out; and

(b) be accompanied by—

(i) a copy of any relevant notification by the appropriate nature conservation body under regulation 74 (opinion of appropriate nature conservation body), and

(ii) any fee required to be paid.

(2) For the purposes of their consideration of the application the local planning authority must assume that the development is likely to have a relevant effect.

(3) The authority must send a copy of the application to the appropriate nature conservation body and must take account of any representations made by them.

(4) If in their representations the appropriate nature conservation body state their opinion that the development is not likely to have a relevant effect, the local planning authority must send a copy of the representations to the applicant.

(5) The sending of the copy of the representations to the applicant under paragraph (4) has the same effect as a notification by the appropriate nature conservation body of their opinion under regulation 74(4).

(6) In any other case in which the application has been sent to the appropriate nature conservation body, the local planning authority must, taking account of any representations made by the appropriate nature conservation body, make an appropriate assessment of the implications of the development for the European site or European offshore marine site in view of that site's conservation objectives.

(7) In the light of the conclusions of the assessment the local planning authority may approve the development only after having ascertained that it will not adversely affect the integrity of the site.

General development orders: supplementary

76.—(1) The local planning authority for the purposes of regulations 73 to 75 are the authority to which an application for approval under regulation 75 (approval of local planning authority) would fall to be made if it were an application for planning permission.

(2) The fee payable in connection with an application for such approval is £30.

(3) Approval required by regulation 73 (general development orders) is to be treated—

(a) for the purposes of the provisions of the TCPA 1990 relating to appeals, as approval required by a condition imposed on a grant of planning permission; and

(b) for the purposes of the provisions of any general development order relating to the time within which notice of a decision should be given, as approval required by a condition attached to a grant of planning permission.