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Advice to MCA

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Enquiry

From
MCA
Date advice given
2 May 2012
Enquiry type
Email

I have a niggling concern that the application correspondence appears to be restricted to 'interested parties' only, and in this case there is a clear element of navigational safety to be scoped within the site inspection, with potentially only the PLA invited that can provide comment in this area.

I am aware that Trinity House have subsequently been invited to attend, and although their interest is specifically aids to navigation , their broader Navigation Safety knowledge will feed the process, and as we work closely together on this front I am sure they will field any concerns or queries arising from the inspection.

The purpose of this email is to address the more fundamental query regarding application correspondence, could you please confirm that although not listed as an interested party MCA as a statutory stakeholder are included in your application consideration and correspondence.

Advice given

For the Kentish Flats Wind Farm Extension application, section 102 of the Planning Act 2008 (PA 2008) applies and sets out the meaning of the term "interested party". As a statutory party included in Schedule 1 of the Infrastructure Planning (Applications: Prescribed Forms and Procedure) Regulations 2009 the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) are an interested party for the purposes of s.102. The MCA was therefore automatically afforded the opportunity to participate in the examination of the application, and will receive notice of all procedural decisions that are made. For the Kentish Flats Wind Farm Extension application there was no requirement for statutory parties to register with the then Infrastructure Planning Commission (IPC) in order to become an interested party.

It is pertinent however to bring to your attention at this stage the implications for statutory parties arising from amendments to s.102 of PA 2008 by the Localism Act 2011. From this point on only certain persons or organisations, such as the applicant and local authority(s) in which the proposed developed is located, automatically become interested parties. Other persons, such as any member of the public, a statutory party as defined in the Schedule to the Infrastructure Planning (Interested Parties) Regulations 2010 (such as the Maritime and Coastguard Agency), or a "neighbouring" local authority, can become an interested party at this stage by making a relevant representation (see s.102 of PA 2008 as amended).

All interested parties, statutory parties and relevant local authorities will continue to be invited by the Examining Authority to attend preliminary meetings (s.88(3A) PA 2008). Following the preliminary meeting however any statutory parties or "neighbouring" local authorities that did not make a relevant representation will be asked whether they wish to become an interested party. Any statutory parties or "neighbouring" local authorities that did not make a relevant representation must respond to the Planning Inspectorate in order to become an interested party. For the avoidance of doubt, statutory parties who did not make a relevant representation in the prescribed form and do not notify the Examining Authority of their wish to be involved in the examination after the Examining Authority's decision on how to examine the application will not be an interested party.