Union claims compulsory-purchase victory
By Olivia Cooper
THE COMPULSORY purchase system is to be completely overhauled.
The NFU claims the planned changes are due to its pressure on the Department of Transport, Local Government and the Regions.
The DTLR described the current system – much of which dates back to the 1840s – as “slow in operation and not always fair to those whose property is affected”.
It intends to make the process simpler, fairer and quicker and taking greater account of farmers interests.
NFU deputy president, Tim Bennett, says: “These proposals will help address many of the concerns that have made compulsory purchase so unpopular.”
Clearer rules will speed up procedures, and compensation is due to be increased to include “loss payments”, to reflect the compulsory nature of the acquisition.
Accommodation work like bridges and underpasses will become a statutory right for landowners, and payment terms are to be revised in favour of the claimant.
But the NFU will continue to argue against the special treatment of privatised utilities, who can still use compulsory purchase powers given to them when they were nationalised industries.
“It galls landowners that private companies can make profits out of resorting to compulsory purchase rather than paying a fair market price,” says Mr Bennett.