Member

I turn to the potential legal implications of the amendment. Category 1 persons are defined in legislation as those with a direct interest in land, including owners, lessees, tenants and occupiers. The need for defining persons within category 1 is to ensure that those with a legal or physical stake in the land affected by a proposed development are properly notified. This, therefore, is a separate provision within the Act which seeks to protect the interests of those persons whose land could be impacted by the projects through proposed compulsory acquisition and ensure that they are not prejudiced from being able to engage with the examination. Including relevant Members of Parliament in this category could introduce ambiguity and inconsistency into the statutory framework. It could risk conflating the role of elected representatives with that of landowners and occupiers, potentially undermining the clarity and coherence of the legislation. I respectfully reassure the Committee that the Planning Act provides sufficient and straightforward provision which allows a Member of Parliament to register as an interested party and meaningfully engage in applications which impact on their constituency.