The Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026
A Statutory Instrument was made to correct the commencement date in the principal 2026 Compulsory Purchase Forms Regulations from February 2025 to the intended February 2026.
This Statutory Instrument corrects a commencement date error in the prior Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) Regulations 2026, replacing the incorrect date of '18th February 2025' with the correct operative date of '18th February 2026' for those principal regulations in England and Wales, exercising powers granted under the Acquisition of Land Act 1981.
Arguments For
Correcting a clear error in a preceding statutory instrument (S.I. 2026/111) ensures legal clarity and prevents potential procedural failures in compulsory purchase processes.
Ensuring the regulations come into force on the intended date (18th February 2026) maintains the coherence of the statutory timetable established by the relevant enabling Act (Acquisition of Land Act 1981) and subsequent amending legislation.
Arguments Against
The necessity of issuing a second amending instrument so quickly (indicated by the '(No. 2)' designation) suggests deficiencies in the drafting or scrutiny process of the original 2026 Regulations, potentially causing initial confusion for affected parties.
While corrective, the amendment process itself adds another layer of legislation that parties involved in land acquisition, particularly local authorities and legal practitioners, must be aware of and track, slightly increasing administrative overhead.
This Statutory Instrument has been made in consequence of a defect in S.I. 2026/111 and is being issued free of charge to all known recipients of that Statutory Instrument.
STATUTORY INSTRUMENTS
2026 No. 143
ACQUISITION OF LAND, ENGLAND AND WALES
The Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026
The document is identified as Statutory Instrument 2026 No. 143, specifically concerning the compulsory purchase of land within England and Wales.
It states that its creation arose because of a flaw or defect found in a previous order, S.I. 2026/111, and is being distributed for free to known recipients of the flawed instrument.
Made - - - -
at 2.32 p.m. on 17th February 2026
Coming into force - -
18th February 2026
The Secretary of State officially made these Regulations at 2:32 p.m. on February 17th, 2026.
The Regulations officially become law and are effective from the following day, February 18th, 2026.
The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 7(2), 11(1) and (3), 12(1), 15(4)(e) and (f) and (5), and 22 of, and paragraphs 2(1) and (3), 3(1), 6(4)(e) and (f) and (5) of Schedule 1 and paragraph 9 of Schedule 3 to, the Acquisition of Land Act 1981( 1 ).
The Secretary of State is issuing these rules under the authority granted by numerous specific sections and schedule paragraphs within the Acquisition of Land Act 1981.
This legislation grants the necessary legal framework for prescribing forms related to compulsory land acquisition procedures.
Citation, commencement and extent
- -(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) (No. 2) Regulations 2026 and come into force on 18th February 2026.
- (2) These Regulations extend to England and Wales.
The first operative regulation establishes the full title for citation purposes and confirms the commencement date is February 18th, 2026.
Furthermore, the scope (extent) of these amending regulations is limited specifically to the jurisdictions of England and Wales.
Amendment to the Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) Regulations 2026
- In regulation 1(1) of the Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) Regulations 2026( 2 ), for '18th February 2025' substitute '18th February 2026'.
Regulation 2 contains the substantive change, which amends the earlier regulations (S.I. 2026/111).
It specifically targets sub-regulation 1(1) within those earlier rules and replaces the erroneous date, '18th February 2025', with the intended date, '18th February 2026'.
( 1 ) 1981 c. 67. Section 11(1) was amended by section 181(3)(b) of the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2003 (c. 55) ('the 2023 Act'). Section 11(3) was inserted by section 100(4) of the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 (c. 5) ('the 2004 Act'). Section 12(1) was amended by section 100(5) of the 2004 Act and by section 181(4) of the 2023 Act. Section 15 was substituted by section 100(7) of the 2004 Act; section 15(4)(e) and (f) was inserted by paragraph 2(2) of Schedule 15 to the Housing and Planning Act 2016 (c. 22) ('the 2016 Act'); section 15(5) was amended by section 183(3)(e) of the 2023 Act. Section 22 was amended by section 181(7) of the 2023 Act. Paragraph 2(1) of Schedule 1 was amended by paragraph 1(3) of Schedule 19 to the 2023 Act. Paragraph 2(3) of Schedule 1 was inserted by section 101(2) of the 2004 Act. Paragraph 3(1) of Schedule 1 was amended by section 101(3) of the 2004 Act and by paragraph 1(4) of Schedule 19 to the 2023 Act. Paragraph 6 of Schedule 1 was substituted by section 101(5) of the 2004 Act; paragraph 6(4)(e) and (f) was inserted by paragraph 3(2) of Schedule 15 to the 2016 Act; paragraph 6(5) was amended by paragraph 3(3)(e) of Schedule 19 to the 2023 Act. Paragraph 9 of Schedule 3 was amended by section 181(8) of the 2023 Act.
This is a legislative footnote detailing the legislative history and amendments to the enabling Act, the Acquisition of Land Act 1981.
It cites various subsequent Acts, like the Levelling-up and Regeneration Act 2023 and the Housing and Planning Act 2016, which modified specific sections referenced in the primary legislation used to create these rules.
( 2 ) S.I. 2026/111.
This is a second footnote identifying the specific Statutory Instrument (S.I. 2026/111) that contains the defect being corrected by the present document.
Status: This is the original version (as it was originally made). This item of legislation is currently only available in its original format.
This text indicates that the version of the instrument being viewed is the initial version as it was first enacted, and it has not yet been incorporated into consolidated legislation texts.
Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government at 2.32 p.m. on 17th February 2026
Taylor of Stevenage Parliamentary Under Secretary of State Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government
The instrument was signed on behalf of the Secretary of State for the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government by the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, Lord Taylor of Stevenage, confirming both the issuer and the signing time/date.
EXPLANATORY NOTE
(This note is not part of the Regulations)
These Regulations amend the Compulsory Purchase of Land (Prescribed Forms) (Ministers) (Amendment) Regulations 2026 ('the 2026 Regulations') and come into force on 18th February 2026.
Regulation 2 substitutes the date on which the 2026 Regulations come into force to correct a mistake made in regulation 1(1) of the 2026 Regulations and clarify that the 2026 Regulations are intended to come into force on 18th February 2026 rather than 18th February 2025.
An impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no impact on the private or voluntary sectors is foreseen.
The Explanatory Note clarifies that this instrument corrects a date error in the principal 2026 Regulations, ensuring their commencement is February 18th, 2026, instead of the erroneous February 18th, 2025.
It also confirms that a formal impact assessment was unnecessary because the change only corrects an error and is not expected to affect the private or voluntary sectors.
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