What happens next
Dates for the Examination can be viewed on the Examination Timetable page.
Notice of the Procedural Decision has been issued by the Examining Authority to Interested Parties in the Rule 8 letter; this includes information about how the Examination will be conducted and the Examination Timetable as currently set out.
21/04/2021 - Deadline for close of examination. See the Examination Timetable for further information.If you have a legal interest in land affected by a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project and:
- have not been identified by the Applicant; and
- did not register to become an Interested Party;
then you can make a request to the Examining Authority to become an Interested Party under s102A of the Planning Act 2008.
Timeline (39 items)
The Examining Authority has issued its further written questions and requests for information – ExQ2 (PDF, 421 KB)
The agendas for the Issue Specific and Compulsory Acquisition Hearings Tuesday 8 – Thursday 10 December 2020 have now been published.
The Examining Authority’s Rule 8(3) and 9 Notice of Postponement to the Site Inspection and Variation to the Examination Timetable (PDF, 202KB) has been published, along with submissions for Deadline 2 and Procedural Deadline D.
The Examining Authority’s Rule 9 and 13 Notice of Hearings 8 – 10 December 2020 (PDF 165KB) has been published.
The Examining Authority’s Rule 8(3), 9 & 17: Notification of decisions to accept as part of the Application the proposed design changes submitted on 9 October 2020 and variation of timetable for the Examination, including a request for further information (PDF, 205 KB) has been published.
The Examining Authority’s Rule 8 letter (PDF, 218 KB) has been published, giving details of the Examination Timetable and other important information about the Examination.
The Examination Timetable (Rule 8 letter) has been sent to Interested Parties
Procedural decision following Preliminary Meeting
The recording of Open Floor Hearing 1, held on Wednesday 21 October 2020, has now been published.
The Open Floor Hearing 1 was concluded on that date, therefore the reserved Open Floor Hearing for 22 October 2020 will not be required.
The recording of the Preliminary Meeting (Part 2), held on Tuesday 20 October 2020, has now been published.
The Applicant, Highways England, submitted a letter on Friday 9 October 2020 (PDF, 39 KB) requesting a change to the accepted Application along with accompanying documents.
The ExA will issue a decision on whether to accept this change by no later than Friday 6 November 2020.
The Agendas for the Preliminary Meeting Part 2 (Tuesday 20 October 2020) (PDF, 63 KB) and the Open Floor Hearing 1 (Wednesday 21 October 2020) (PDF, 63 KB) have now been published.
Written Responses to Matters Discussed at Preliminary Meeting Part 1 (PDF, 28 KB) submitted for Procedural Deadline B have also now been published.
The recordings of the Preliminary Meeting Part 1, held on 1 October 2020, have now been published.
If you would like to make written comments on Preliminary Meeting Part 1, register to participate in Preliminary Meeting (PM) Part 2 on 20 October 2020 and/or register to participate in Open Floor Hearing 1 (OFH1) on 21 October 2020 please complete the PM and OFH1 Involvement form by Procedural Deadline B (Monday 12 October 2020)
In addition to the written comments (PDF, 159 KB) submitted by Procedural Deadline A, the Examining Authority has accepted the following submissions (PDF, 174 KB) in advance of the Preliminary Meeting part 1.
Further to the Rule 6 letter published on 20 August 2020, please note it has been decided that the Preliminary Meeting part 1 on Thursday 1 October 2020 will not be live streamed.
The Meeting will be recorded and the recording published on the NI Project webpage as soon as possible following the event. Written comments on any procedural matters raised at the event should be provided by Procedural Deadline B (Monday 12 October 2020) before the second part of the Preliminary Meeting on Tuesday 20 October 2020.
The Examining Authority has accepted the following written comments (PDF, 159 KB) submitted by Procedural Deadline A .
The Examining Authority has accepted the Applicant’s draft Accompanied Site Visit Itinerary (PDF, 922kb) as an additional submission.
The notification of the Preliminary Meeting (PM) (Rule 6 letter) (PDF 518kb) has been issued. This includes details of the PM, the draft Examination Timetable, notification of an Open Floor Hearing, and other related matters.
The Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) (PDF 213kb) have been updated.
Preliminary Meeting Involvement Form
Interested Parties wishing to participate in the PM must complete the Preliminary Meeting Involvement Form by Procedural Deadline A (10 September 2020).
The Examining Authority has issued a notification to clarify the Statements of Common Ground that are requested (PDF 147kb).
Following the Applicant’s notification of proposed scheme changes (PDF, 4MB) and the Examining Authority’s response, (PDF, 118KB) the Applicant is undertaking consultation on their proposed changes. If you wish to respond to this consultation please contact the Applicant directly on 0300 123 5000 or [email protected].
The notification of Preliminary Meeting (Rule 6 letter) has been sent Read the letter
The letter also includes the draft Examination Timetable and Initial Assessment of Principal Issues.
The Applicant has submitted a notification of proposed scheme changes (PDF 4MB).
The Examining Authority has responded to the notification of proposed scheme changes (PDF 118KB).
The deadline for responses to the digital Questionnaire, referred to in the Progress Note issued on 20 July and to be used to plan the Preliminary Meeting and examination going forward, is by close of play Monday 10 August 2020.
The note of the Examining Authority’s Unaccompanied Site Inspection on 16 June 2020 has been published.
The Examining Authority has issued a Progress Note which set out requests for information, an assessment of principal issues, requests to parties and response to a change request from the Applicant. The deadline for responses to the Questionnaire referred to in the letter is 10 August 2020.
The Examining Authority has also issued its First Written Questions.
The Examining Authority has exercised their discretion to accept an updated representation on behalf of Nurton Developments (Hilton) Limited.
The Examining Authority (ExA) has exercised its discretion to accept Additional Submissions from the Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Natural England.
The Applicant has informed us that some persons with a legal interest in the land affected by the Proposed Development were not notified of the accepted application and were therefore not made aware of the period within which they could make a Relevant Representation. The Applicant has now notified the omitted persons who have been allowed further time to make Relevant Representations. If you are a person that has received the Applicant’s notification dated 1 June 2020 and need assistance making a Relevant Representation, please contact us at [email protected] or telephone 0303 444 5000.
You can now register as an Interested PartyRegister online
Please note due to the current health crisis we can no longer send or receive paper forms. If you are unable to complete a registration form online and would like to register your interest, please call the helpline on 0303 444 5000 or email the project mailbox, as found on the project page, for advice on how to register.
For further advice please see Advice Note 8.2: How to register to participate in an Examination.
Please note: due to the restrictions around COVID-19 the Relevant Representations period has been extended to Monday 18 May 2020.
The application documents have now been published.
This provision is solely for the purpose of allowing more time to all those who wish to become familiar with the detail of what is being proposed ahead of the relevant representation period without lengthening the overall time required for the application process. There will be no opportunity at this stage to make comments on the application. However, if the application is accepted anyone interested in the application will be able to register and express their views during the relevant representation stage and the subsequent examination.