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Section 38: General consideration of applications.

Water Resources Act 1991 · 1991 c. 57View on legislation.gov.uk

Part II: Water Resources Management — Chapter II: ABSTRACTION AND IMPOUNDING

The appropriate agency shall not determine any application for a licence under this Chapter before the end of the period specified in the notice referred to in section 37(4)(b) above.

An application shall be determined in two stages in accordance with subsections (1B) and (1C) below if it is an application for a full licence or a transfer licence which, if granted—

would take effect immediately after the expiry of an existing licence of the same type (the "existing licence") and be held by the same person as the holder of that licence; but
would in any other respect be different from the existing licence in a way which, if the existing licence were to continue without expiring, would require an application to be made under section 51(2) below for a variation of the licence.

So far as the application relates to any such difference as is mentioned in subsection (1A)(b) above, it shall first be treated for determination purposes as if it were an application for a variation under section 51(2) below (but as if the existing licence were to continue without expiring).

If the result of that would have been the grant of the application for variation of the licence, the application referred to in subsection (1) above shall be treated as one for a licence with that variation, and its determination concluded accordingly; and otherwise its determination shall be concluded as if it were an application for a licence with no such variation.

Subject to the following provisions of this Chapter, on any application to the appropriate agency for a licence under this Chapter, the appropriate agency—

may grant a licence containing such provisions as the appropriate agency considers appropriate; or
if, having regard to the provisions of this Chapter, the appropriate agency considers it necessary or expedient to do so, may refuse to grant a licence.

Without prejudice to section 39(1) below, the appropriate agency, in dealing with any application for a licence under this Chapter, shall have regard to all the relevant circumstances, including any duty imposed by or under any enactment on bodies having functions in relation to inland waters (for example, navigation authorities and internal drainage boards), and shall have regard in particular to—

any representations in writing relating to the application which are received by the appropriate agency before the end of the period mentioned in subsection (1) above; and
the requirements of the applicant, in so far as they appear to the appropriate agency to be reasonable requirements.

and may have regard to any failure on the part of the applicant to make an application under section 40 of the Water Industry Act 1991 pursuant to a proposal made by the appropriate agency under section 20C above.

Subsection (1) above, and paragraph (a) of subsection (3) above, do not apply if in relation to the application in question the requirements of section 37(1) above do not apply by virtue of section 37(6)(a) above or have been dispensed with by virtue of section 37A above.

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This legislation text comes from legislation.gov.uk. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. These source and reuse terms cover the legislation text, not Remedy's commentary.

Reuse reviewed 21 August 2026 under Open Government Licence v3.0.