Advice to Andrew Weaver, Copper

Enquiry

• From: Andrew Weaver, Copper
• Date advice given: 3 April 2020
• Enquiry type: Email

Hi there We’re acting on behalf of a number of NSIP projects looking to undertake statutory consultation over the next few month. Are you providing any guidance on pre-application consultation procedures during the Covid-19 outbreak? As far as we can see a lot, if not all consultation, can be done online, but there are a few sticking points, for example around depositing hard copies of documents. I notice the Welsh Government is looking to relax any requirements around this. Is the Planning Inspectorate aware of the position in England? I would be grateful for any guidance you have. Kind regards

Advice given

Dear Mr Weaver, Thank you for your e-mail. I can confirm that the Inspectorate continues to provide a Pre-application service; all meetings are held digitally via Microsoft Teams. As you are aware, applicants are required to demonstrate that they have complied with all statutory consultation duties set out in the Planning Act 2008 and associated secondary legislation. Whilst we are aware of the current difficulties’ applicants are experiencing in seeking to discharge some of these duties, particularly in relation to making documents (hard and electronic) available at public deposit locations, the Regulations remain in force. On this basis your clients should seek their own legal advice about the effect of the current public health situation on their respective programmes. For the avoidance of doubt, any update to the Regulations amending the requirement to use public deposit locations will require Parliamentary approval. The Inspectorate is not aware of any timescales surrounding this at present. Please regularly check the advice the Planning Inspectorate has issued in relation to COVID-19, which is updated on a regular basis: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/coronavirus-covid-19-planning-inspectorate-guidance.