Commons Management Act 1989

The Minister may, if the circumstances so warrant, appoint a person as an inspector to investigate the conduct of the affairs of a trust.

For the purposes of investigation under subsection (1), an inspector has the following powers:

the power at all reasonable times to enter any premises of the trust,

the power to inspect all records kept on those premises and to require any person whom the inspector reasonably believes to have custody or control of those records to produce them for inspection,

if any such records:

are not in writing, or

are not in the English language, or

are not decipherable on sight,

the power to make and take away copies of the whole or any part of a record inspected or produced for inspection in accordance with paragraph (b) or a statement produced in accordance with paragraph (c),

the power to require a member of the trust board or, if the trust’s affairs are being managed by a local authority, a member of that authority, or an employee of the trust, or any person found on premises entered in accordance with paragraph (a) to answer any question relating to:

any records inspected, produced or required to be produced in accordance with paragraph (b), or

any statement produced in accordance with paragraph (c), or

the affairs of the trust.

The power of an inspector to inspect the records of a trust under this section includes the power to inspect the records of a lessee or licensee which the trust has power to inspect under the lease or licence concerned.

Nothing in this section authorises an inspector to enter any part of premises being used for residential purposes without the consent of the occupier of that part of the premises.