The Access to the Countryside (Appeals against Works Notices) (England) Regulations 2011

Procedure where the Secretary of State or inspector causes a pre-inquiry meeting to be held

25.—(1) The Secretary of State or the inspector must hold a pre-inquiry meeting if it appears to be necessary, and any such meeting (or, where there is more than one, the first such meeting) must be held within twelve weeks of the start date.

(2) Where the Secretary of State or the inspector decides to hold such a meeting, the Secretary of State must notify the appellant and the appropriate authority in writing of the intention to hold such a meeting.

(3) The Secretary of State or the inspector must give not less than two weeks’ written notice of the pre-inquiry meeting to—

(a) the appellant and the appropriate authority; and

(b) any other person whose presence at the pre-inquiry meeting the Secretary of State considers to be desirable.

(4) The inspector—

(a) is to preside at the pre-inquiry meeting;

(b) is to determine the matters to be discussed and the procedure to be followed;

(c) may require any person present at the pre-inquiry meeting who the inspector considers is behaving in a disruptive manner to leave; and

(d) may refuse to permit that person to return or to attend any further pre-inquiry meeting or may permit that person to return or attend only on such conditions as the inspector may specify.

(5) Where a pre-inquiry meeting is held pursuant to paragraph (1), the inspector may hold a further pre-inquiry meeting, and in that case must arrange for such notice to be given of the further pre-inquiry meeting as appears to be necessary.

(6) Paragraph (4) applies to any further pre-inquiry meeting held pursuant to paragraph (5).

(7) If the Secretary of State or the inspector (“the requesting authority”) requests any further information at the pre-inquiry meeting from the appellant, the appropriate authority or any other person present at that meeting, the person required to provide the information must ensure that two copies of it have been received by the requesting authority within any reasonable time specified by the requesting authority of the conclusion of the pre-inquiry meeting.

(8) The Secretary of State must, as soon as practicable after receipt of any such information, send a copy of it to the other parties entitled to appear at the inquiry.