The Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order 1995 (“the 1995 Order”) specifies the procedures connected with planning applications, appeals to the Secretary of State and related matters so far as these are not laid down in the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 (“the 1990 Act”) and the Town and Country Planning (Applications) Regulations 1988 (S.I. 1988/1812). It also deals with the maintenance of registers of planning applications, applications for certificates of lawful use or development, and other related matters. This Order amends the 1995 Order.

Article 3 amends the definition of “reserved matters” in article 1 of the 1995 Order and specifies what needs to be included in applications for outline planning permission in relation to those matters.

Articles 4, 5 and 6 amend the 1995 Order in consequence of provisions in the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Article 4 inserts a new article 2A into the 1995 Order. The effect of article 2A and section 55(2A) of the 1990 Act is that operations which increase the gross floor space of a building used for the retail sale of goods, other than hot food, by more than 200 square metres will constitute development and will require planning permission.

Article 5 inserts a new article 2B into the 1995 Order to make provision for the preparation and revocation of local development orders by local planning authorities and specifies the type of development for which a local development order cannot grant planning permission. Article 5 also inserts a new article 25A to provide for registers of local development orders.

Article 6 inserts a new article 4C into the 1995 Order to make provision for design and access statements which are required to accompany certain applications for planning permission.

Article 7 amends article 20 of the 1995 Order to provide that the time period within which a local planning authority must determine an application for planning permission for “major developments” is 13 weeks. It also makes certain changes to how the period is calculated.

A regulatory impact assessment was prepared in relation to Part 4 of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004. Further assessments have been prepared in relation to this Order. These assessments have been placed in the Library of each House of Parliament and copies may be obtained from PDCD, Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, Eland House, Bressenden Place, London SW1E 5DU (Telephone 020 7944 8716).