The Planning(Northern Ireland) Order 1991

Service of purchase notice

94.—(1) Where—

(a) on an application for planning permission to develop any land, permission is refused or is granted subject to conditions; or

(b) by an order under Article 38 planning permission in respect of any land is revoked, or is modified by the imposition of conditions,

then if any owner of the land claims—

(i) that the land has become incapable of reasonably beneficial use in its existing state; and

(ii) in a case where planning permission was granted subject to conditions, or was modified by the imposition of conditions, that the land cannot be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of the permitted development in accordance with those conditions; and

(iii) in any case, that the land cannot be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of any other development for which planning permission has been granted,

he may serve on the Department a notice requiring the Department to purchase his estate in the land in accordance with this Part.

(2) Where—

(a) on an application for listed building consent in respect of a building, consent is refused or is granted subject to conditions; or

(b) by an order under Article 47, listed building consent in respect of a building is revoked or is modified by the imposition of conditions,

then if any owner of the land claims—

(i) that the land has become incapable of reasonably beneficial use in its existing state; and

(ii) in a case where consent was granted subject to conditions with respect to the execution of the works or, as the case may be, was modified by the imposition of such conditions, that the land cannot be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of the works in accordance with those conditions; and

(iii) in any case, that the land cannot be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of any other works for which listed building consent has been granted, he may serve on the Department a notice requiring the Department to purchase his estate in the land in accordance with this Part.

(3) If any person entitled to an estate in land in respect of which an order is made under Article 39 claims—

(a) that by reason of the order the land is incapable of reasonably beneficial use in its existing state; and

(b) that it cannot be rendered capable of reasonably beneficial use by the carrying out of any development for which planning permission has been granted, whether by that order or otherwise,

he may serve on the Department a notice requiring the Department to purchase his estate in the land in accordance with this Part.

(4) A notice under this Article—

(a) shall be served within the time and in the manner specified by a development order; and

(b) is referred to in this Order as a “purchase notice”.

(5) Where, for the purpose of determining whether the conditions in paragraph (1)(i) to (iii), paragraph (2)(i) to (iii) or paragraph (3)(a) and (b) are fulfilled in relation to any land, any question arises as to what is a reasonably beneficial use of that land, then in determining that question for that purpose no account shall be taken of any prospective use of that land which would involve the carrying out of new development as defined in section 43(1) of the Act of 1965, or of any works requiring listed building consent which might be executed to the building.

(6) For the purposes of this Article, the conditions referred to in Articles 34, 35 and 46 shall be disregarded.

(7) A person on whom there has been served a repairs notice under Article 109(4) shall not in any case be entitled to serve a purchase notice in respect of the building in question until the expiration of three months beginning with the date of the service of the repairs notice; and if during that period the Department commences proceedings for the compulsory acquisition of the building in the exercise of its powers under Article 109, that person shall not be so entitled unless and until those proceedings are discontinued.

(8) In paragraph (2) and in the other provisions of this Part as they apply for the purposes of a purchase notice served under paragraph (2) “the land” means the building in respect of which listed building consent has been refused, or granted subject to conditions, or revoked or modified by the imposition of conditions, and in respect of which its owner serves a notice under paragraph (2), together with any land comprising the building, or contiguous or adjacent to it, and owned with it, being land as to which the owner claims that its use is substantially inseparable from that of the building and that it ought to be treated, together with the building, as a single holding.