The Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme Regulations 2003

4.—(1) Before determining an appeal under regulation 26, the appeal body may afford the appellant and the regulator an opportunity of appearing before and being heard by a person appointed by it (the “person holding the hearing”) and it shall do so in any case where a request is duly made by the appellant or the regulator to be so heard.

(2) A hearing held under sub-paragraph (1) may, if the person holding the hearing so decides, be held wholly or partly, in private.

(3) Where the appeal body causes a hearing to be held under sub-paragraph (1) it shall give the appellant and the regulator at least 28 days notice (or such shorter period of notice as they may agree) of the date, time and place fixed for the holding of the hearing.

(4) In the case of a hearing which is to be held wholly or partly in public, the appeal body shall, at least 21 days before the date fixed for the holding of the hearing—

(a) publish a copy of the notice mentioned in sub-paragraph (3) in a newspaper circulating in the locality in which the installation is operated; and

(b) serve a copy of that notice on every person mentioned in paragraph 3(1) who has made representations in writing to the appeal body.

(5) The appeal body may vary the date fixed for the holding of any hearing and sub-paragraphs (3) and (4) shall apply to the variation of a date as they applied to the date originally fixed.

(6) The appeal body may also vary the time or place for the holding of a hearing and shall give such notice of any such variation as appears to him to be reasonable.

(7) The persons entitled to be heard at a hearing are the appellant and the regulator.

(8) Nothing in sub-paragraph (7) shall prevent the person holding the hearing from permitting any other persons to be heard at the hearing and such permission shall not be unreasonably withheld.

(9) After the conclusion of a hearing, the person holding the hearing shall make a report in writing to the appeal body which shall include his conclusions and his recommendations or his reasons for not making any recommendation.

(10) Paragraph 4(5) and (6) of Schedule 3 shall apply to hearings held under this paragraph as if references to the appointed person in those paragraphs were references to the person holding the hearing under this paragraph.