Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997

Duties of authorities on service of purchase notice

90 Action by planning authority on whom purchase notice is served

(1) The planning authority on whom a purchase notice is served shall serve on the owner or lessee by whom the purchase notice was served a notice (a “response notice”) stating—

(a) that the planning authority are willing to comply with the purchase notice,

(b) that another local authority or statutory undertakers specified in the response notice have agreed to comply with it in their place, or

(c) that for reasons so specified the planning authority are not willing to comply with the purchase notice and have not found any other local authority or statutory undertakers who will agree to comply with it in their place, and that they have sent the Secretary of State a copy of the purchase notice and of the response notice.

(2) A response notice must be served before the end of the period of 3 months beginning with the date of service of the purchase notice.

(3) Where the planning authority on whom a purchase notice is served by an owner or lessee have served a response notice on him in accordance with subsection (1)(a) or (b), the planning authority or, as the case may be, the other local authority or statutory undertakers specified in the response notice shall be deemed—

(a) to be authorised to acquire the interest of the owner or lessee compulsorily in accordance with the relevant provisions, and

(b) to have served a notice to treat in respect of it on the date of service of the response notice.

(4) Where the planning authority propose to serve such a response notice as is mentioned in subsection (1)(c), they must first send the Secretary of State a copy—

(a) of the proposed response notice, and

(b) of the purchase notice.

(5) Where the planning authority on whom a purchase notice is served by an owner or lessee do not serve a response notice on him before the end of the period mentioned in subsection (2)—

(a) the purchase notice shall be deemed to be confirmed at the end of that period, and

(b) subsection (3) shall apply as if the authority had served a response notice on him on the last day of that period.

(6) A notice to treat which is deemed to have been served by virtue of subsection (3)(b) or (5)(b) may not be withdrawn under section 39 of the [1963 c. 51.] Land Compensation (Scotland) Act 1963.

91 Procedure on reference of purchase notice to Secretary of State

(1) Where a copy of a purchase notice is sent to the Secretary of State under section 90(4), he shall consider whether to confirm the notice or to take other action under section 92 in respect of it.

(2) Before confirming a purchase notice or taking such other action, the Secretary of State shall give notice of his proposed action—

(a) to the person who served the purchase notice,

(b) to the planning authority on whom it was served, and

(c) if the Secretary of State proposes to substitute any other local authority or statutory undertakers for the planning authority on whom the notice was served, to them.

(3) A notice under subsection (2) shall specify the period (which must not be less than 28 days from its service) within which any of the persons, authorities or statutory undertakers on whom it is served may require the Secretary of State to give them an opportunity of appearing before, and being heard by, a person appointed by the Secretary of State for the purpose.

(4) If within that period any of those persons, authorities or statutory undertakers so require, the Secretary of State shall, before he confirms the purchase notice or takes any other action under section 92 in respect of it, give each of them such an opportunity.

(5) If, after any of those persons, authorities or statutory undertakers have appeared before and been heard by the appointed person, or the persons, authorities and undertakers concerned have agreed to dispense with a hearing, it appears to the Secretary of State to be expedient to take action under section 92 otherwise than in accordance with the notice given by him, the Secretary of State may take that action accordingly.

92 Action by Secretary of State in relation to purchase notice

(1) Subject to the following provisions of this section and to section 93(3), if the Secretary of State is satisfied that the conditions specified in subsection (3) or, as the case may be, subsection (4) of section 88 are satisfied in relation to a purchase notice, he shall confirm the notice.

(2) If it appears to the Secretary of State to be expedient to do so, he may, instead of confirming the purchase notice—

(a) in the case of a notice served on account of the refusal of planning permission, grant planning permission for the development in question;

(b) in the case of a notice served on account of planning permission for development being granted subject to conditions, revoke or amend those conditions so far as appears to him to be required in order to enable the land to be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of that development;

(c) in the case of a notice served on account of the revocation of planning permission by an order under section 65, cancel the order;

(d) in the case of a notice served on account of the modification of planning permission by such an order by the imposition of conditions, revoke or amend those conditions so far as appears to him to be required in order to enable the land to be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of the development in respect of which the permission was granted; or

(e) in the case of a notice served on account of the making of an order under section 71 or paragraph 1 of Schedule 8, revoke the order or, as the case may be, amend the order so far as appears to him to be required in order to prevent the land from being rendered incapable of reasonably beneficial use by the order.

(3) If it appears to the Secretary of State that the land, or any part of the land, to which the purchase notice relates could be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use within a reasonable time by the carrying out of any other development for which planning permission ought to be granted, he may, instead of confirming the purchase notice or, as the case may be, of confirming it so far as it relates to that part of the land, direct that, if an application for planning permission for that development is made, it must be granted.

(4) If it appears to the Secretary of State to be expedient that another local authority or statutory undertakers should acquire the interest of the owner or lessee for the purpose of any of their functions, he may, if he confirms the notice, modify it, in relation to either the whole or any part of the land to which the purchase notice relates, by substituting another local authority or statutory undertakers for the planning authority on whom the notice was served.

(5) Any reference in section 91 to the taking of action by the Secretary of State under this section includes a reference to the taking by him of a decision not to confirm the purchase notice either on the grounds that any of the conditions referred to in subsection (1) are not satisfied or by virtue of section 93.

93 Power to refuse to confirm purchase notice where land has restricted use by virtue of previous planning permission

(1) This section applies where a purchase notice is served in respect of land which consists in whole or in part of land which has a restricted use by virtue of an existing planning permission.

(2) For the purposes of this section, land is to be treated as having a restricted use by virtue of an existing planning permission if it is part of a larger area in respect of which planning permission has previously been granted (and has not been revoked) and either—

(a) it remains a condition of the planning permission (however expressed) that that part shall remain undeveloped or be preserved or laid out in a particular way as amenity land in relation to the remainder, or

(b) the planning permission was granted on an application which contemplated (expressly or by necessary implication) that the part should not be comprised in the development for which planning permission was sought, or should be preserved or laid out as mentioned in paragraph (a).

(3) Where a copy of the purchase notice is sent to the Secretary of State under section 90(4), although satisfied that the land has become incapable of reasonably beneficial use in its existing state, he need not confirm the notice under section 92(1) if it appears to him that the land having a restricted use by virtue of an existing planning permission ought, in accordance with that permission, to remain undeveloped or, as the case may be, remain or be preserved or laid out as amenity land in relation to the remainder of the large area for which that planning permission was granted.

94 Effect of Secretary of State’s action in relation to purchase notice

(1) Where the Secretary of State confirms a purchase notice—

(a) the planning authority on whom the purchase notice was served, or

(b) if under section 92(4) the Secretary of State modified the purchase notice by substituting another local authority or statutory undertakers for that planning authority, that other authority or those undertakers,

shall be deemed to be authorised to acquire the interest of the owner or lessee compulsorily in accordance with the relevant provisions, and to have served a notice to treat in respect of it on such date as the Secretary of State may direct.

(2) If, before the end of the relevant period, the Secretary of State has neither—

(a) confirmed the purchase notice, nor

(b) taken any such action in respect of it as is mentioned in section 92(2) or (3), nor

(c) notified the owner or lessee by whom the notice was served that he does not propose to confirm the notice,

the notice shall be deemed to be confirmed at the end of that period, and the authority on whom the notice was served shall be deemed to be authorised as mentioned in subsection (1) and to have served a notice to treat in respect of the owner’s interest at the end of that period.

(3) Subject to subsection (4), for the purposes of subsection (2) the relevant period is the period of 6 months beginning with the date on which a copy of the purchase notice was sent to the Secretary of State.

(4) The relevant period does not run if the Secretary of State has before him at the same time both—

(a) a copy of the purchase notice sent to him under section 90(4), and

(b) a notice of appeal under section 47, 130 or 154 of this Act or under section 18 or 35 of the [1997 c. 9.] Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) (Scotland) Act 1997 (appeals against refusal of listed building consent, etc. and appeals against listed building enforcement notices) or under section 19 of the [1997 c. 10.] Planning (Hazardous Substances) (Scotland) Act 1997 (appeals against decisions and failure to take decisions relating to hazardous substances) relating to any of the land to which the purchase notice relates.

(5) Where—

(a) the Secretary of State has notified the owner or lessee by whom a purchase notice has been served of a decision on his part to confirm, or not to confirm, the notice, and

(b) that decision is quashed under Part XI,

the purchase notice shall be treated as cancelled, but the owner or lessee may serve a further purchase notice in its place.

(6) The reference in subsection (5) to a decision to confirm, or not to confirm, the purchase notice includes—

(a) any decision not to confirm the notice in respect of any part of the land to which it relates, and

(b) any decision to grant any permission, or give any direction, instead of confirming the notice, in respect of any part (or the whole) of the land to which it relates.

(7) For the purposes of determining whether a further purchase notice under subsection (5) was served within the period prescribed for the service of purchase notices, the planning decision in consequence of which the notice was served shall be treated as having been made on the date on which the decision of the Secretary of State was quashed.

(8) A notice to treat which is deemed to have been served by virtue of subsection (1) or (2) may not be withdrawn under section 39 of the [1963 c. 51.] Land Compensation (Scotland) Act 1963.