Law Commission consultation on compulsory purchase

Closes 31 Mar 2025

Chapter 2: Authorising a compulsory purchase order

Consultation Question 4:

We provisionally propose that any future consolidation of compulsory purchase legislation should state expressly that a compulsory purchase order should not be authorised unless there is a compelling case in the public interest for the compulsory acquisition.

Do consultees agree?

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.22 to 2.24 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 5:

We provisionally propose that the separate procedures for the authorisation of compulsory purchase orders (in Part II of, and Schedule 1 to, the Acquisition of Land Act 1981) relating to orders made by Ministers and orders made by other bodies, should be amalgamated.

Do consultees agree?

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.27 to 2.30 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 6:

We invite consultees’ views as to the most appropriate terminology to be used in future consolidated legislation to describe the stages in the authorisation process for a compulsory purchase order. In particular, would it be best to describe an order as being:

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.32 to 2.37 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 7:

We invite consultees’ views as to whether a non-ministerial compulsory purchase order should be executed, as now, when it is “made”, or whether it should be executed at the end of the authorisation process, once the order has been modified (if applicable) and confirmed by the confirming authority.

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.39 to 2.45 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 8:

We provisionally propose that when publicising the making of a compulsory purchase order by site notice, there should be an express obligation upon acquiring authorities (so far as reasonably practicable) to keep the notice in place for the duration of the objection period.

Do consultees agree?

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.47 to 2.50 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 9:

We invite consultees’ views as to whether the lack of an express role in section 16 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 for the confirming authority causes problems in practice.

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.63 to 2.65 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 10:

We provisionally propose that section 31 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981, which contains a power for the “appropriate Minister” to authorise (jointly with the confirming authority) the acquisition of a statutory undertaker’s land without a certificate under section 16, should be repealed.

Do consultees agree?

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.67 to 2.69 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 11:

We provisionally propose that section 17 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981, which requires an order acquiring statutory undertakers’ or local authorities’ land to be subject to special parliamentary procedure in certain circumstances, should be repealed.

Do consultees agree?

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.71 to 2.76 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 12:

We invite consultees’ views as to whether the provisions of section 19 of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981 for the protection of common land etc. cause any problems in practice.

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.78 to 2.81 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 13:

We have identified three possible options for reform (or not) of the statutory review procedure in Part IV of the Acquisition of Land Act 1981. These are:

  1. Option 1 (no change – leave the existing ambiguity): do nothing to the existing statutory framework and allow any further development in the law to be undertaken through decisions of the courts.
  2. Option 2 (impose greater clarity on the existing framework as we understand it): any challenge to the validity of a compulsory purchase order should be made under the statutory review procedure, and no such challenge may be made by judicial review. The law should be changed to allow an application for statutory review to be lodged once a compulsory purchase order has been made. Judicial review could only be used to challenge decisions made prior to the making of the order.
  3. Option 3 (our 2004 recommendation): any challenge to the validity of a decision to confirm a compulsory purchase order should be made pursuant to the statutory review procedure, and no such challenge may be made by way of judicial review. Any challenge to earlier stages in the process, up to submitting the order for confirmation, should be made by judicial review.

We invite consultees’ views on their preferred option and the reasons for their preference.

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.95 to 2.101 of our consultation paper.

Consultation Question 14:

We invite consultees’ views as to whether the statutory review procedure in Part IV of Acquisition of Land Act 1981 should be amended so that “persons aggrieved” by a decision to refuse to confirm a compulsory purchase order must use that procedure, instead of judicial review.

More information

For more information relevant to this question, see paragraphs 2.103 to 2.106 of our consultation paper.