Sections 16 and 17 of the Commons Act 2006 (“the 2006 Act”) make provision for applications to deregister land which is registered as common land or as a town or village green, and to register other land in replacement.

Such applications are, in Wales, to be determined by the Welsh Ministers or a person appointed by them. Where an application is granted, section 17(1) and (2) of the 2006 Act require the Welsh Ministers to make an order directing the commons registration authority to amend its register of common land or town or village greens accordingly.

Part 1 of the 2006 Act has not yet been fully brought into force in relation to Wales. Until sections 1 to 3 are brought into force, an order under section 17 is to be treated as an order directing the registration authority to amend the registers which it maintains pursuant to the Commons Registration Act 1965 (“the 1965 Act”), by virtue of transitional provisions contained in the Commons Act 2006 (Commencement No.2, Transitional Provisions and Savings) (Wales) Order 2012 (S.I. 2012/739 (W.99) (C.19)).

These Regulations specify the manner in which a registration authority must amend the registers which it maintains pursuant to the 1965 Act, when it receives an order under section 17.

The Welsh Ministers' Code of Practice on the carrying out of Regulatory Impact Assessments was considered in relation to these Regulations. As a result, a regulatory impact assessment has been prepared as to the likely costs and benefits of complying with these Regulations. A copy can be obtained from the Welsh Government, Cathays Park, Cardiff, CF10 3NQ or online from www.wales.gov.uk.