The Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006

Water resources management plans: publication and representations

71.—(1) A water undertaker shall—

(a) send a draft water resources management plan to the Department;

(b) state whether it appears to the undertaker that any information contained in that plan is or might be commercially confidential (as regards itself or another person); and

(c) give the Department the name of each such other person and his address for service of a notice under paragraph (2)(a).

(2) If the water undertaker states that it so appears in relation to any such information, the Department shall—

(a) if the person to whom or to whose business the information relates is not the water undertaker, give that person notice that the information is included in a draft water resources management plan and, unless paragraph (10) applies, is required to be published under this Article; and

(b) give each person (including the water undertaker) to whom any such information relates a reasonable opportunity—

(i) of objecting to the publication of the information relating to him on the ground that it is commercially confidential; and

(ii) of making representations to the Department for the purpose of justifying any such objection,

and shall determine, taking any objections and representations under sub-paragraph (b) into account, whether the information is or is not commercially confidential.

(3) A water undertaker shall—

(a) (subject to paragraph (10)) publish the draft water resources management plan in the prescribed way or, if no way is prescribed, in a way calculated to bring it to the attention of persons likely to be affected by it;

(b) publish with it a statement—

(i) whether any information has been excluded from the published draft plan by virtue of paragraph (10) and, if it has, the general nature of that information; and

(ii) that any person may make representations in writing about the plan to the Department before the end of a period specified in the statement; and

(c) send a copy of the published draft plan and accompanying statement to such persons (if any) as may be prescribed.

(4) The Department shall—

(a) send to the water undertaker a copy of any representations it receives following publication of the draft plan under paragraph (3); and

(b) give the water undertaker a reasonable period of time within which to comment on the representations;

but the Department may exclude from any representation sent under sub-paragraph (a) any information contained therein which the Department determines to be commercially confidential (as regards any person other than the water undertaker).

(5) The Department may in regulations prescribe how such representations and any comments by the water undertaker on them are to be dealt with.

(6) Regulations under paragraph (5) may provide for the Department to cause a local inquiry to be held in connection with the draft water resources management plan.

(7) The Department may direct a water undertaker that its water resources management plan must differ from the draft sent to it under paragraph (1) in ways specified in the direction, and (subject to paragraph (9)) it shall be the duty of the water undertaker to comply with the direction.

(8) The water undertaker shall—

(a) (subject to paragraph (10)) publish the water resources management plan in the prescribed way or, if no way is prescribed, in a way calculated to bring it to the attention of persons likely to be affected by it; and

(b) publish with it a statement whether any information has been excluded from the published plan by virtue of paragraph (10) and, if it has, the general nature of that information.

(9) If the water undertaker considers that publishing a water resources management plan complying with a direction under paragraph (7) would mean including in the published plan any information (other than any information in relation to which the Department has already made a determination under paragraph (2)) which might be commercially confidential (as regards itself or another person)—

(a) the water undertaker shall send the Department a notice saying so, and giving the Department the name of any such other person and his address for service of a notice under paragraph (2)(a) as applied by sub-paragraph (b); and

(b) paragraph (2) shall apply in relation to that information as it applies in relation to the information referred to there;

and the Department may either confirm its direction under paragraph (7) (which is to be treated as a new direction under paragraph (7)) or revoke the previous such direction (or the previous one so treated) and give a new one.

(10) The published version of a draft water resources management plan published under paragraph (3)(a), and a water resources management plan published under paragraph (8)(a), shall exclude any information which—

(a) the Department has determined under paragraph (2) (or that paragraph as applied by paragraph (9)) is commercially confidential; or

(b) the Secretary of State directs the water undertaker to exclude on the ground that it appears to the Secretary of State that its publication would be contrary to the interests of national security.

(11) Any steps to be taken by a water undertaker under this Article shall be completed by such time or within such period as the Department may direct.