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Planning Bill

I accept that the noble Lord has concerns, but it seems to me that they in fact go to the whole basis on which the IPC has been established. These powers are in line with all its other powers. The safeguards that are in place we regard as very robust. They include a safeguard for the Secretary of State where the Secretary of State believes that the terms of any order would contravene community law or any of the convention rights. As I say, there is a scrutiny role for the House of Lords. So the noble Lord’s points on decisions that would be made on these matters are no different from the fact that we would be transferring this power in respect of the development consent orders themselves. We can, of course, rehearse these issues on Report. The noble Earl, Lord Caithness, made some remarks on compulsory purchase orders. We have the ability to issue guidance on compulsory purchase orders. This will give greater detail on how the IPC will treat cases of compulsory purchase orders, which I took to be his concern.