Land
Section 5: Temporary possession and use
20.Section 5 brings into effect Schedule 5, which contains provisions dealing with the temporary possession and use of land required for Crossrail.
Section 6: Acquisition of land within limits shown on deposited plans
21.Section 6(1) authorises the Secretary of State, rather than the nominated undertaker, to acquire compulsorily the land required for Crossrail within the Act limits.
22.Section 6(2) provides that, without prejudice to the general power granted by section 6(1), the land identified in columns (1) and (2) of the table in Part 1 of Schedule 6 may be acquired or used for the purpose set out in column (3) of the table. This table therefore gives an indication of the purposes for which certain parcels of land may be acquired or used (for example, for utility diversions, means of access, or for a worksite).
23.Section 6(3) brings into effect Parts 2 and 3 of Schedule 6, which deal with the application of legislation relating to compulsory purchase and supplementary provisions.
24.Section 6(4) provides that the power granted by subsection (1) shall not apply to land if the surface of the land is comprised in a highway and the land is specified in the table in paragraph 15(2) of Schedule 3.
25.Section 6(5) provides that the power granted by subsection (1) shall not apply to any land shown as being required temporarily, unless the land is also specified in paragraph 11(1) of Schedule 6. In that case the power does extend to the acquisition of subsoil at a depth greater than 9 metres from the surface of such land.
26.Section 6(6) provides that the compulsory purchase power granted by subsection (1) shall expire 5 years after the Act obtained Royal Assent.
27.Section 6(7) allows the Secretary of State, by order, to extend the time limit in subsection (6). This extension may be done only once in relation to any particular bit of land, and the time limit may be extended by no more than five years. Any such order is subject to special parliamentary procedure.
Section 7: Acquisition of land not subject to the power under section 6(1)
28.Section 7(1) allows the Secretary of State to acquire compulsorily land outside the Act limits, if it is needed in connection with Crossrail.
29.Section 7(2) and (3) enable the Secretary of State to acquire land within the Act limits, if it is needed in connection with Crossrail, but restrict the power so that it only applies where the power under section 6(1) does not. The difference between the two powers is that the former requires the making of a compulsory purchase order, whereas the latter does not (see paragraph 2 of Schedule 6).
30.Section 7(4) makes it clear that land may be acquired under these provisions for certain purposes, such as for the relocation of drainage or utility undertakers’ apparatus, which can sometimes be needed some distance from the line of the railway itself, or for land statutorily required to be provided in exchange for land taken.
31.Section 7(5) allows the Secretary of State to acquire an easement or other new right over the land in question, as opposed to acquiring the land itself.
32.Section 7(6) provides that any acquisition under the section would be subject to normal compulsory purchase procedures under the Acquisition of Land Act 1981.
33.Section 7(7) provides that the same modifications of the compulsory purchase legislation apply in relation to the acquisition of easements under subsection (5) as apply in relation to the acquisition of easements under section 6(1).
Section 8: Extinguishment of private rights of way
34.Section 8(1) and (2) provide for any private rights of way over land within the Act limits held by the Secretary of State for the purposes of the Crossrail works to be extinguished.
35.Section 8(3) sets out certain rights of way that are not to be extinguished.
36.Section 8(4) enables the Secretary of State to direct that any other particular right of way is to be excepted from extinguishment under the section.
37.Section 8(5) and (6) provide for the private rights of way to be extinguished at the time of acquisition, in respect of some land, and at the time of entry onto the land, in the case of other land.
38.Section 8(7) and (8) provide that compensation may be payable to anyone who suffers loss as a result of any such extinguishment, with any disputes about such compensation to be determined under the Land Compensation Act 1961.
Section 9: Extinguishment of rights of statutory undertakers etc.
39.Section 9(1) provides for the rights of statutory undertakers over land held by the Secretary of State for the purposes of the Crossrail works to be extinguished as if it had been acquired under Part 9 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990.
40.Section 9(2)to (5) amend the application of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. This is primarily necessary because the compulsory purchase powers in the Act are vested in the Secretary of State, not the nominated undertaker, and so the nominated undertaker will not have been the acquiring authority.
