§ 2.19 p.m.
§ THE PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY, MINISTRY OF HOUSING AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT (LORD KENNET)My Lords, with the leave of the House I should like to make a short personal statement. During the Stansted debate last Monday I made the following statement—[OFFICIAL REPORT, col. 880]:
… in the Town and Country Planning Bill which will shortly be laid before Parliament, the Government propose to introduce a new system which will enable someone wishing to initiate a development which is either very large or is of a very unfamiliar nature and which raises questions of national or regional and not only local importance to take the initiative of applying without specifying a particular site. An inquiry can then be held into the preliminary question of where such a development should go and reasons may be heard for putting it on sites. A, B, C, or D.1106 I regret that one phrase I used may have misled the House. The words "without specifying a particular site" are incorrect. The Bill will provide that applications in respect of a particular site can be referred by the Minister to a new type of body to be set up for the purpose, which will be able to examine the suitability not only of that site but also of other sites. I regret this mistake. But the House will see that the essence of what I said remains unchanged. I here will be a new procedure for comparing alternative sites for a given development.