Regional Development Agencies Act 1998

9 (1) Where any land has been vested in or acquired by a regional development agency under this Act and—

(a) there subsists over that land a right vested in or belonging to statutory undertakers for the purpose of the carrying on of their undertaking, being a right of way or a right of laying down, erecting, continuing or maintaining apparatus on, under or over that land, or

(b) there is on, under or over the land apparatus vested in or belonging to statutory undertakers for the purpose of the carrying on of their undertaking,

the agency may serve on the statutory undertakers a notice stating that, at the end of the period of 28 days from the date of service of the notice or such longer period as may be specified therein, the right will be extinguished or requiring that, before the end of that period, the apparatus shall be removed.

(2) The statutory undertakers on whom a notice is served under sub-paragraph (1) may, before the end of the period of 28 days from the service of the notice, serve a counter-notice on the agency stating that they object to all or any provisions of the notice and specifying the grounds of their objection.

(3) If no counter-notice is served under sub-paragraph (2)—

(a) any right to which the notice relates shall be extinguished at the end of the period specified in that behalf in the notice, and

(b) if, at the end of the period so specified in relation to any apparatus, any requirement of the notice as to the removal of the apparatus has not been complied with, the agency may remove the apparatus and dispose of it in any way it may think fit.

(4) If a counter-notice is served under sub-paragraph (2) on the agency, it may either withdraw the notice (without prejudice to the service of a further notice) or apply to the Secretary of State and the appropriate Minister for an order under this paragraph embodying the provisions of the notice with or without modification.

(5) Where by virtue of this paragraph any right vested in or belonging to statutory undertakers is extinguished, or any requirement is imposed on statutory undertakers, those undertakers shall be entitled to compensation from the regional development agency concerned.

(6) Sections 280 and 282 of the [1990 c. 8.] Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (measure of compensation to statutory undertakers) shall apply to compensation under sub-paragraph (5) as they apply to compensation under section 279(4) of that Act.

(7) Except in a case where paragraph 8 applies—

(a) the reference in paragraph (a) of sub-paragraph (1) to a right vested in or belonging to statutory undertakers for the purpose of the carrying on of their undertaking shall include a reference to a right conferred by or in accordance with the telecommunications code on the operator of a telecommunications code system; and

(b) the reference in paragraph (b) of that sub-paragraph to apparatus vested in or belonging to statutory undertakers for the purpose of the carrying on of their undertaking shall include a reference to telecommunication apparatus kept installed for the purposes of any such system.

(8) Where paragraph (a) or (b) of sub-paragraph (1) has effect as mentioned in sub-paragraph (7), in the rest of this paragraph and in paragraph 10—

(a) any reference to statutory undertakers shall have effect as a reference to the operator of any such system as is referred to in sub-paragraph (7); and

(b) any reference to the appropriate Minister shall have effect as a reference to the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry.