Publicity and consultation
5.—(1) Where the Department proposes to make, alter, repeal or replace a development plan for an area, it shall proceed in accordance with this Article, unless Article 6 (which provides a short procedure for certain alterations, etc.) applies.
(2) The Department shall consult with the district council for the area or any part of the area to which the plan or proposed plan relates.
(3) The Department shall take such steps as will in its opinion secure—
(a)that adequate publicity is given, in the area to which the plan or proposed plan relates, to the Department’s proposals or to the issues involved;
(b)that persons who may be expected to wish to make representations to the Department about those proposals or issues are made aware that they are entitled to do so;
(c)that such persons are given an adequate opportunity of making such representations, and the Department shall consider any representations made to it within the prescribed period.
(4) The Department shall then prepare the relevant documents, that is, the plan, alterations, instrument of repeal or replacement plan, as the case may be, and shall make copies of the documents available for inspection at such places as the Department considers appropriate.
(5) Each copy of the documents made available for inspection shall be accompanied by a statement of the prescribed period within which objections may be made to the Department.
(6) The Department shall then take such steps as may be prescribed for the purpose of advertising-
(a)the fact that the documents are available for inspection;
(b)the places and times at which, and period during which, they may be inspected; and
(c)the prescribed period within which objections may be made to the Department.