Provision in orders authorising compulsory acquisition
Section 64 – Purpose for which compulsory acquisition may be authorised
181.Section 64 provides that an infrastructure consent order may only include provision authorising the compulsory acquisition of land if the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that the land is:
required for the development to which the infrastructure consent relates,
required to facilitate that development or is incidental to that development, or
replacement land given in exchange for the land authorised to be compulsorily acquired under section 70 (commons, open spaces etc: compulsory acquisition of land) or section 71 (commons, open spaces etc: compulsory acquisition of rights over land),
and that there is a compelling case in the public interest for the land to be acquired compulsorily.
Section 65 – Land to which authorisation of compulsory acquisition can relate
182.Section 65 provides that an infrastructure consent order may only include provision authorising the compulsory acquisition of land if the land is in Wales or the Welsh marine area and one of the following conditions is met:
the condition in subsection (2) is that the application for infrastructure consent included a request for compulsory acquisition of the land to be authorised;
the condition in subsection (3) is that all persons with an interest in the land consent to the inclusion of this provision;
the condition in subsection (4) is that the procedure specified in regulations has been followed in relation to that land.
183.“
Section 66 – Application of compulsory acquisition provisions
184.Section 66 provides that Part 1 of the Compulsory Purchase Act 1965 applies (with specified modifications) to any infrastructure consent order that contains provisions authorising the compulsory acquisition of land.
185.However, the order itself may make contrary provision.
186.The Compulsory Purchase Act 1965 sets out the procedure for compulsory purchase.
Section 67 – Compensation for compulsory acquisition
187.Section 67 restricts the provision that may be made about compensation for compulsory acquisition in an infrastructure consent order that authorises the compulsory acquisition of land.
Section 68 – Statutory undertakers’ land
188.This section sets out the conditions that must be satisfied for an infrastructure consent order to authorise the compulsory acquisition of statutory undertakers’ land.
189.Section 68 applies to land (“statutory undertakers’ land”) that a statutory undertaker has acquired for the purpose of its undertaking, and as a result of a representation made about an application for infrastructure consent, the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that the land is used for the purposes of carrying on the statutory undertakers’ undertaking or an interest in the land is held for those purposes.
190.For an infrastructure consent order to be made that includes provision authorising the compulsory acquisition of statutory undertakers’ land, the Welsh Ministers must be satisfied that the nature and the situation of the land are such that:
the land can be purchased and not replaced without serious detriment to the carrying on of the undertaking, or
it can be purchased and replaced with other land without any such detriment.
191.Similarly, an infrastructure consent order can include a provision authorising the compulsory acquisition of a right over statutory undertakers’ land only if the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that:
the right can be purchased without serious detriment to the carrying on of the undertaking, or
any detriment can be remedied by the statutory undertaker using other land.
Section 69 – National Trust land
192.Section 69 applies to land which belongs to the National Trust that is held inalienably by them. It provides that an infrastructure consent order which authorises the compulsory acquisition of such land will be subject to special Senedd procedure if the National Trust has made an objection in a representation about an application for infrastructure consent and this objection has not been withdrawn.
Section 70 – Commons, open spaces etc: compulsory acquisition of land
193.Section 70 applies to land forming part of a common, open space or fuel or field garden allotment, where the acquisition does not involve the acquisition of a new right over land. This section provides that an infrastructure consent order that authorises the compulsory acquisition of such land will be subject to special Senedd procedure unless the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that one of the following applies:
replacement land has been or will be given in exchange for the land authorised to be compulsorily acquired (“order land”) and that the replacement land will be vested in the prospective seller and subject to the same rights, trusts and incidents;
where the order land is or forms part of an open space only, there is no suitable land to be given in exchange or any suitable land is only available at a prohibitive cost, and it is in the public interest for development to be begun sooner than is likely to be possible if the order were subject to special Senedd procedure;
where the order land is or forms part of an open space only, it is being acquired for a temporary purpose;
the land being acquired does not exceed 200 square metres or is required for the widening or drainage of an existing highway (or partly for the widening and partly for the drainage of such a highway), and the giving of land in exchange for it is unnecessary.
194.Where the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that one of these exceptions applies, they must record that fact in the order or otherwise in the instrument or other document containing the order.
195.Any replacement land must be no less in area than the land being compulsorily acquired and must be no less advantageous.
Section 71 – Commons, open spaces etc: compulsory acquisition of rights over land
196.Section 71 applies to land forming part of a common, open space or fuel or field garden allotment. This section provides that an infrastructure consent order that authorises the compulsory acquisition of a new right over such land will be subject to special Senedd procedure unless the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that one of the following applies:
the order land when burdened with the order right will be no less advantageous than it was before to the person in whom it is vested, any other persons (if any) entitled to rights of common or other rights, and the public;
replacement land has been or will be given in exchange for the order right and that land has been or will be vested in the persons in which the order land is vested and that replacement land will be subject to the same rights, trusts and incidents as the order land;
where the land is open space only, there is no suitable land to be given in exchange for the order right or any suitable land is only available at a prohibitive cost, and it is in the public interest for development to be begun sooner than is likely to be possible if the order were subject to special Senedd procedure;
where the land is open space only, and it is being acquired for a temporary purpose;
the land over which the right is being acquired does not exceed 200 square metres, or the right is required in connection with the widening or drainage of an existing highway (or in connection partly with the widening and partly with the drainage of such a highway) and the giving of land in exchange for the order right is unnecessary in the interest of the person entitled to rights of common or other rights or in the interests of the public.
197.Where the Welsh Ministers are satisfied that one of these exceptions applies, they must record that fact in the order or otherwise in the instrument or other document containing the order.
198.In this section, “
Section 72 – Notice of authorisation of compulsory acquisition
199.Section 72 provides that regulations must be made by the Welsh Ministers that require a person who has been authorised by an infrastructure consent order to compulsorily acquire land or a person for whose benefit the order authorises the creation of a new right (the “prospective purchaser”) to give, publish or display a “compulsory acquisition notice” and to provide the public with access to a copy of the infrastructure consent order to which the notice relates.
200.A “compulsory acquisition notice” is a notice in the form specified in regulations that contains the information set out in subsection (2).
201.The notice must also be sent to the Chief Land Registrar and is to be a local land charge in respect of the land to which it relates.
