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CG Fry & Son Ltd has won their Supreme Court Appeal – appropriate assessment of a development’s effect on Ramsar sites is not required at discharge of conditions stage.The Court has unanimously allowed CG Fry’s appeal, reversing the decisions of the courts below which had upheld an Inspector’s decision to dismiss CG Fry’s s.78 planning appeal against Somerset Council’s non-determination of applications to discharge pre-commencement conditions on the reserved matters approval for Phase 3 of their Jurston Farm development. The Council had declined to discharge the conditions on the basis that:An appropriate assessment of the impact of the development on the Somerset Levels Ramsar, as a result of phosphate pollution from waste water, was required and (following advice from Natural England) adverse effects on the integrity of the Ramsar could not be ruled out in the absence of a nutrient neutrality scheme which was not at the time available; andThe effect of Regulation 63 of the Habitats Regulations, as applied to Ramsar sites by the NPPF (paragraph 194 of which says Ramsar sites “should be give the same protection as habitats sites”) was that the conditions could not be…

The High Court has ruled in favour of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), allowing it to proceed with awarding a multimillion-pound contract for global medical support to Healix International, despite legal objections from the incumbent provider, International SOS Assistance UK.

On an application for summary judgment to enforce an adjudicator’s decision relating to issues arising under a design and build contract, the adjudicator had not breached the rules of natural justice by failing to seek further submissions when adopting a rate of pay which he considered to be “fair and reasonable” and had provided sufficient reasons for his decision.BackgroundThe Claimant (“Clegg”) was the contractor and the Defendant (“Prestige”) the employer under an amended JCT Design and Build contract dated 10 November 2022 for the construction of a leisure and retail centre in Bishop Auckland. Practical completion was achieved, and a dispute arose between the parties in respect of the valuation of the Clegg’s application for payment (“Application 37”). Application 37 was made on 27 August 2024. Prestige served a payment notice in respect of it on 30 August 2024. At that stage, the issues between the parties included the value of eight variations, which were agreed to be changes, but whose valuation in accordance with clause 5 of the contract was not agreed (“the Relevant Changes”), and the Clegg’s entitlement to extensions of time (“EOTs”) and prolongation costs.Clegg…