[F115A.— Supension of public rights of way—supplementary.E+W+S

[F6(1A)As soon as reasonably practicable after making an order under section 15 of this Act the Coal Authority shall submit the order to the Secretary of State for confirmation and publish a notice in the prescribed form identifying the right of way in question and stating—

(a)that the Coal Authority has made an order that will suspend the right of way in connection with the working of coal by opencast operations and has submitted the order for confirmation to the Secretary of State;

(b)whether the applicant for the order is to make any alternative way available and, if he is, what the alternative is;

(c)that opencast planning permission has been applied for or, as the case may be, granted;and

(d)that objections to the confirmation of the order may be made in writing to the Secretary of State within such time, not being less than 28 days from the publication of the notice, as may be specified.]

(2)The duty to publish a notice imposed by subsection (1) [F7or (1A)] above is a duty to publish it—

(a)in two successive weeks in one or more local newspapers circulating in the locality in which the land over which the right of way subsists is situated; and

(b)in the same or any other two successive weeks, in the appropriate Gazette.

[F8(2A)The Secretary of State shall not confirm an order under section 15 of this Act unless he thinks fit and—

(a)he is satisfied that the notice required by subsection (1A) above has been published in relation to that order and that the requirements of subsection (5) below have been satisfied in relation to that notice;

(b)the period within which objections may be made in accordance with that notice has expired; and

(c)the opencast planning permission has been granted.]

(3)The period within which objections may be made expires when the period specified in the last publication of the notice expires; and any period specified in earlier publications is to be treated as extended accordingly.

(4)A notice under subsection (1) [F9or (1A)]above shall name a place in the locality where a copy of the application [F9or, as the case may be, the order]and of a map showing the right of way can be inspected.

[F10(5)Where any person is required under subsection (1) or (1A) above to publish any notice, he shall also -] ,—

(a)inform—

(i)in England F11. . ., the district council and, except in the case of a metropolitan district, the county council, and any parish F11. . . council or parish meeting;

[F12(ia)in Wales, the county council or county borough council, and any community council] and

(ii)in Scotland, every local authority in whose area any part of the land over which the right of way subsists is situated

[F13of the submission of the application or, as the case may be, of the making of the order;]

(b)send them a map showing the right of way and a copy of [F14the notice under subsection (1) or (1A) above]; and

(c)affix to some conspicuous object at either end of the right of way a notice giving in the prescribed form the prescribed particulars of [F15the matters contained in the notice under subsection (1) or (1A) above.].

F16(6). . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

(7)The Secretary of State may, if he thinks fit, cause a public local inquiry to be held before determining whether to [F17confirm] an order, and shall cause such an inquiry to be held if an objection is made by any such authority [F18other than a parish or community council or parish meeting as is mentioned in subsection (5)(a) above] and is not withdrawn.

(8)If the Secretary of State causes such an inquiry to be held, he shall consider all objections to the application which are duly made by any person and not withdrawn and the report of the person who held the inquiry before determining whether to [F19confirm] the order.

(9)An order under section 15 of this Act may be made either in accordance with the [F20. . .] application or subject to such modifications as [F21the Coal Authority] may determine [F22; and this subsection shall be without prejudice to the power of the Secretary of State, by virtue of subsection (3) of that section, to make further modifications when confirming the order.]

[F23(10)A confirmed order under section 15A of this Act shall not have effect at any time before the person on whose application the confirmed order was made has published] a notice in the prescribed form that the order [F24has been confirmed], describing the right of way which is suspended, stating the date on which the order [F24is to come] into operation and naming a place in the locality where a copy of the order and of any map to which it refers can be inspected at all reasonable hours, and [F24has served a like notice and a copy of the order and of such a map] on any body required under this section to be informed of the application for the order.

(11)The duty to publish a notice imposed by subsection (10) above is a duty to publish it—

(12)In this section “the appropriate Gazette” means—

(a)the London Gazette in a case where the land over which the right of way subsists is situated in England or Wales; and

(b)the Edinburgh Gazette in a case where it is situated in Scotland.]