Legislation – Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025

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Part 3Development and nature recovery

Powers and duties: Natural England etc

88Remedial action: powers of Secretary of State etc to enter and survey or investigate land

(1)

A person authorised by a relevant authority may enter and survey or investigate any land for remedial action purposes.

(2)

Subsection (3) applies if a justice of the peace is satisfied, on an application by a person authorised by a relevant authority giving written information on oath—

(a)

that there are reasonable grounds for entering and surveying or investigating any land except a private dwelling for remedial action purposes, and

(b)

that a condition specified in section 84(1)(b)(i), (ii) or (iii) is met (reading the reference to an authorised person in subsection (1)(b)(i) as a reference to a person authorised by the relevant authority).

(3)

The justice of the peace may issue a warrant conferring a power on any person authorised by the relevant authority to enter and survey or investigate the land, if necessary using reasonable force.

(4)

The following provisions apply in relation to the exercise of the powers conferred by or under subsections (1) and (3) on a person authorised by the relevant authority as they apply in relation to the exercise of the powers conferred by or under sections 83 and 84 on a person authorised by Natural England, reading references in the applied provisions to Natural England as references to the relevant authority—

(a)

section 83(2) to (6) (notice requirement etc);

(b)

section 84(3) to (10) and the definition of “statutory undertaker” in subsection (11) of that section (requirements for execution of warrant);

(c)

section 85(1) to (8) (further provision about powers of entry);

(d)

section 86 (compensation);

(e)

section 87 (offences).

(5)

Subsections (9) to (11) of section 85 (land held by statutory undertakers) apply in relation to the exercise of the powers conferred by or under subsections (1) and (3) by a person authorised by an authority within subsection (7)(b)as they apply in relation to the exercise of the powers conferred by or under sections 83 and 84 on a person authorised by Natural England, reading the reference in the applied provisions to Natural England as a reference to the authority within subsection (7)(b).

(6)

In this section “remedial action purposes” means purposes connected with the taking by the Secretary of State or another public authority of—

(a)

a conservation measure as mentioned in section 70(4)(a), or

(b)

any other measure to improve the conservation status of an identified environmental feature as mentioned in section 70(4)(b).

(7)

In this section “relevant authority” means—

(a)

the Secretary of State, or

(b)

a public authority to which the Secretary of State has given a direction under section 70(4)(a) or (b).