The Government has commenced a consultation exercise seeking views on the Draft Town and Country Planning (Pre-commencement Conditions) Regulations 2018.

When brought into force, S100ZA of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 will prohibit the imposition of pre-commencement conditions on a grant of planning permission without the written agreement of the applicant. The proposed regulations would exempt LPAs from the requirement to obtain the written agreement of an applicant before imposing pre-commencement conditions in the following circumstances:

• the local planning authority (or Secretary of State) has given notice in writing to the applicant that if planning permission is granted they intend to impose the pre-commencement condition specified in the notice; and 
• the applicant does not provide a substantive response to the notice by the date specified in the notice 

The notice would be required to include

• the text of the proposed pre-commencement condition;
• the full reasons for the propose pre-commencement condition;
• the full reasons for the proposed condition being a pre-commencement condition; and
• the date by which any response must be received (10 working days beginning with the date on which the notice is given)

The consultation runs until 27 February 2018.