The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Amendment) (England) Regulations 2008

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (England and Wales) Regulations 1999 (S.I.1999/293) (“the 1999 regulations”) implemented, in England and Wales, Council Directive 85/337/EEC (“the EIA Directive”) on the assessment of the effects of certain public and private projects on the environment (O.J. No. L175, 5.7.1985, p.40) as amended by Council Directive 97/11/EC (O.J. No. L73, 14.3.1997, p.5). The EIA Directive was also amended by Council Directive 2003/35/EC (O.J. No. L156, 25.6.2003, p.17). The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment)(England and Wales)(Amendment) Regulations 2000 (S.I. 2000/2867) (“the 2000 Regulations”) implemented the Directives in respect of ROMP applications (applications made to mineral planning authorities to determine the conditions to which a mineral planning permission is subject under Schedule 2 to the Planning and Compensation Act 1991 (c.34) and Schedules 13 and 14 to the Environment Act 1995 (c.25) made after the commencement of the 2000 Regulations (15 November 2000). The Town and Country Planning (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Minerals Permissions and Amendment)(England) Regulations 2008 (S.I. 2008/1556) (“the 2008 Regulations”) applied the 1999 Regulations, with modifications, to ROMP applications made before 15 November 2000 which were undetermined on 22 July 2008 and contained provisions applying to all ROMP applications.

These Regulations amend the 1999 Regulations to implement the Directives in respect of applications for approval of reserved matters and applications for approval of conditions attached to the grant of planning permissions (“subsequent applications”) and applications for approval of conditions attached to the grant of minerals permissions (“ROMP subsequent applications”).

Regulations 2 to 11 amend the 1999 Regulations so that their provisions apply to subsequent applications.

Regulation 7 applies to subsequent consents article 8 of, and Schedule 3 to, the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995 (S.I. 1995/419, amended by S.I. 1999.293 and 2006/1062), which provide for publicity procedures to be followed by local planning authorities in the case of planning permissions that are subject to environmental impact assessment.

Regulation 9 substitutes paragraphs (1) to (21) of Regulation 26A (inserted by the 2000 Regulations) which deals with ROMP applications. The new paragraphs apply the 1999 Regulations, with modifications, to ROMP applications and to ROMP subsequent applications.

Regulation 12 amends the Town and Country Planning (Determination of Appeals by Appointed Persons) (Prescribed Classes) Regulations 1997, which prescribe the classes of appeal which are to be determined by persons appointed by the Secretary of State in accordance with the provisions of Schedule 6 to the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 instead of being determined by the Secretary of State. It excludes from the reserved classes of appeal, enforcement appeals relating to unauthorised development to which the EIA Directive applies.

Regulation 13 revokes regulations 3 and 4 of the 2008 Regulations, as the provisions of regulation 3 are incorporated in the substituted regulation 26A(17)(d) of the 1999 Regulations and regulation 4 is re-enacted as new regulation 26B of the 1999 Regulations.

An impact assessment has been prepared in relation to these Regulations. It has been placed in the Library of each House of Parliament and is available on the internet at www.communities.gov.uk. Copies can be obtained by post from the Planning Central Casework Division, Department for Communities and Local Government, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London SW1E 5DU.