§ Mrs. MayTo ask the Secretary of State for Transport, Local Government and the Regions if he will set out the criteria by which a public inquiry on planning is designated as a major inquiry. [45449]
971W
§ Mr. ByersA Code of Practice, "Preparing for Major Inquiries in England" outlines procedures for handling major inquiries under the Planning Acts in England. The Code is set out in Annex 4 of DETR Circular 5/2000 "Planning Appeals: Procedures (Including Inquiries into Called-in Planning Applications)"
Paragraph 4 of the Code indicates that it is intended for application in cases where the development proposal is of major public interest because of its national or regional implications, or the extent or complexity of the environmental, safety, technical or scientific issues involved, and where for these reasons there are a number of third parties involved as well as the applicant and the local planning authority.