Planning permission for marine fish farms
51.Section 23 amends section 31A of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 by inserting new subsections (2A), (4A) and (4B) and amending subsection (8).
52.Inserted subsection (2A) enables Scottish Ministers to grant planning permission for the operation of an individual marine fish farm either by order or on an application to them. Inserted subsections (4A) and (4B) ensure that farms for which planning permission had been granted by order are not disadvantaged should the order be revoked before the “appropriate date”. The “appropriate date” is the date after which planning permission is required for the operation of certain marine fish farms and is the later of 31 March 2014 or the date of expiry of the consent in place on 1 April 2007 (under which the fish farm is authorised to operate). The effect is that planning permission will not be required for the farm as a consequence of previous grant of planning permission by the order being revoked until the appropriate date for the fish farm.
53.Section 23(4) amends subsection (8) of section 31A of the 1997 Act to remove the requirement for regulations to specify in which cases applications must be made.