My Lords, this amendment stands in my name and in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Berkeley. We have discussed how to calculate the fees for applications that are submitted to the Planning Inspectorate under the nationally significant procedure. The difference is really very simple. The regulations as they are drafted at the moment appear quite clearly to require that the fees be paid only for the days on which an application is examined. This has been interpreted in practice as every day between the launch of the application and its final decision. These cannot both be right. The question is: which is right?
The trade association took advice from a very prominent Silk in this area, Michael Humphries QC, who is in no doubt whatever. I quote from his opinion:
“It is apparent from the Explanatory Notes, the Explanatory Memorandum and the Guidance … that the government considers the words ‘relevant day’”—
in the regulations—
“to be synonymous with each ‘working day’ of the examination period … In my opinion, however, that interpretation does not accord with the clear statutory language in Regulations 8 and 9, combined with the definition of the Examining authority in Regulation 2 … Regulation 9(3) is explicit: a relevant day is a day during the examination period on which the Examining authority (i.e. the single appointed person or the Panel) ‘examined the application’. In my view that wording does contemplate ‘relevant days’ as being days on which the Examining authority actually examines the application”.
That seems to be perfectly clear. The Government have recognised that, I think, because we were sent yesterday the draft of some regulations which are intended to correct the position. However, what they are doing in the draft that we have seen is making sure that the regulations now comply with what has been done by PINS, charging fees for every single day between the application and its decision, whether or not the planning application was examined on a particular day.
It is rather disgraceful that the authority has been charging fees on a basis which was clearly inconsistent with the wording of the former regulations, but I am not sure that I can be any kinder about a Government who then say, “Well, we’re going to change the regulation so that it fits our misinterpretation”. That is what has been happening and it is rather unfortunate. The fees can be quite substantial. If you are going to charge fees for an application—I do not quarrel that applicants should pay the cost, or most of the cost, of the process of examining—it should be done consistently and fairly. It is not right to charge by the day or for a day on which their application is not considered.
I have a list of some of the fees that have been charged. I shall not read them all out. The daily rates run between £4,080 a day—for the Hinkley Point reactor, where there are a lot of applicants—to £1,230 a day for projects where there are single applicants. Where there are three inspectors, the rate is £2,680 a day. That runs for five days a week. It does not include the weekends or public holidays but they can amount to very substantial sums. The lists that I have run between £33,000 and £34,000 for the application. It is important to get it right but it must also be fair. I do not think the new draft regulation is fair and I hope the Government will take it back and think again. I beg to move.