Commentary on Sections Part 1 – Strategic Highways Companies Section 2: Area and highways in an appointment
31.Subsection (1)(a) and (b) of section 2 provides that a strategic highways company must be appointed to an area (and that area must be within England) and that the highways within the area in respect of which the company is appointed must be specified (although subsection (2) provides that this may be by name or by description). Subsection (3) provides that the highways specified must be highways for which the Secretary of State (or another strategic highways company) is the highway authority.
32.It is therefore possible, for example, for one company to be appointed for the whole of England, or for two or more companies to be appointed for different areas. The initial policy intention is for the appointment of one strategic highways company for the whole of England.
33.Any order containing the appointment of a single company for the whole of England is not subject to Parliamentary scrutiny. Section 55 provides that an order containing the first appointment of a company in respect of part of England only (ie the first appointment as part of an arrangement for two or more strategic highways companies to be appointed for different areas) is subject to the affirmative resolution procedure. Section 55 provides that an order containing a subsequent appointment of a company in respect of part of England only is subject to the negative resolution procedure.
34.Responsibility for a limited number of highways in Wales is retained by the Secretary of State. Subsection (4) allows for those highways to be included within the appointment.
35.Subsections (5) and (6) provide that in the event of a strategic highways company ceasing to be the highway authority for one or more highways (whether by virtue of a variation or termination of the strategic highways company’s appointment) the Secretary of State will automatically become the highway authority for those highways.