Commons Bill [HL]

moved Amendment No. 37:"Page 40, line 21, leave out from beginning to ““section”” and insert ““In its application to any works carried out on or after 28th June 2005 but before the day on which section 38(1) above comes into force,””" The noble Lord said: My Lords, my next comment may make the noble Lord, Lord Livsey, even more concerned—although he would never say so—about an unholy alliance. Government Amendments Nos. 37 and 39 respond again to concerns raised by the noble Baroness, Lady Byford, and the noble Earl, Lord Peel, on Report about the wider powers in paragraph 6 of Schedule 3 to enforce against works already undertaken on common land before this Bill was introduced into this House on 28 June 2005. I said then that we would give further consideration to this matter. We have done so, and these two amendments are the result. We have brought forward these amendments because on reflection we agree that it is not reasonable for the schedule to widen the Section 194 enforcement powers in relation to works undertaken before the introduction of the Bill. Such works are likely to have been undertaken in reliance on the enforcement position set out in the existing Section 194, and we do not think it would be just to allow any person to apply to the county court for enforcement action in such cases. I make clear that it remains possible for the parties who can already apply to the county court under Section 194 for enforcement action to do so in relation to works constructed before introduction. These parties are the district, borough or county council or unitary equivalent, the landowner, and anyone else with a legal interest in the common, such as a commoner or the holder of an easement over the land. All these will remain able to apply to the court for enforcement against unlawful works, subject to the existing rule under the Limitation Act 1980 that prevents enforcement action against works undertaken more than 12 years earlier. For works undertaken after the introduction of this Bill and before the commencement of Part 3 and associated repeal of Section 194 of the Law of Property Act 1925, the government amendments do not change the current effect of paragraph 6 of Schedule 3. Any person or body will be able to apply to the county court to enforce the Section 194 controls in such cases. And we intend to implement the repeal of Section 194, when that happens in due course, with a saving to preserve all powers to enforce the section in relation to works already undertaken by the date of repeal. When at that point the new Part 3 works control regime comes into force, any person or body will equally be able to apply to the court to enforce the controls under that part. We think the government amendments strike the proper balance between providing for better enforcement of the works control regime and protecting the position of land owners, occupiers and others who have undertaken works in reliance on the previous regime. The noble Lord, Lord Greaves, may disagree and may speak to his amendment in due course. I think we are agreed that his amendment would neuter the two government amendments. If his amendment were passed, paragraph 6 of Schedule 3 would simply have its current effect. Any person could then apply to the court to enforce Section 194, irrespective of when the works in question were actually undertaken. I beg to move.