Environmental statements

30.60An environmental statement has to be deposited if the bill authorises work to be carried out on land specified in the bill. An environmental statement is not required in relation to any works for which planning permission has been granted. In the case of a hybrid bill, the statement is deposited at the same time as the bill is introduced.1

Members of the public can comment on the statement before a bill's second reading. The public are granted a minimum of 56 days from the introduction of the bill in Parliament to submit comments on the environmental statement to the Government. The Government is required to publish the comments received. The comments are assessed and summarised by an independent assessor, appointed by the Examiners of Petitions for Private Bills. The independent assessor's report must be submitted to the House within a period of not less than 28 days of the comments on the environmental statements being received from the Minister by the independent assessor. When the assessment is submitted to the House, a period of 14 days must then elapse before the bill can be given a second reading. See Standing Order No 224A (HC) and Standing Order 83A (HL).

If supplementary environmental information is submitted after the deposit of the environmental statement, a minimum of 42 days is provided for comments to be submitted on the supplementary information. These comments will be published and a summary of them, made by the independent assessor, must be published. At least 14 days must then elapse before the third reading of the bill (or, if the supplementary information was submitted before second reading, before the second reading of the bill).