Postal Services Bill

Session 2010 - 12
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Other Bills before Parliament

Postal Services Bill

LORDS amendments to the
Postal Services Bill
[The page and line references are to HL Bill 38, the bill as first printed for the Lords.]
Clause 2
1
Page 2, line 3, at end insert “, and

(c)
the objective intended to be achieved by the undertaking of it.

(3A)
The report must—

(a)
contain information about the expected commercial relationship,

after the proposed disposal, between the Royal Mail company in

question and any Post Office company, and

(b)
if the proposed disposal would result in shares or share rights being

owned by or on behalf of an employee share scheme for the first

time, give details of the scheme.


In paragraph (b) “employee share scheme” has the meaning given by

section 3.”
Clause 4
2
Page 2, line 41, after “may” insert “by order”
3
Page 3, line 7, after “has” insert “by order”
4
Page 3, line 7, at end insert—

“(3A)
An order under subsection (2) or (3)(b) is subject to affirmative resolution

procedure.”
Clause 5
5
Page 3, line 28, leave out paragraphs (a) and (b) and insert “proposes to make an

order under section 4(2) or (3)(b) (order directing or approving issue or transfer of

shares or share rights in a Post Office company to a relevant mutual).”
6
Page 3, line 32, leave out subsection (2) and insert—

Bill 196 55/1

2

“(2)
The Secretary of State must lay before Parliament a report on the proposed

issue or transfer before making the order.”
7
Page 3, line 36, leave out paragraph (a) and insert—

“(a)
give details of the proposed issue or transfer (including the

expected time-scale for the issue or transfer),”
8
Page 3, line 38, after “are” insert “proposed”
Clause 11
9
Page 6, line 27, at end insert—

“( )
In subsection (2)(b) the reference to postal services includes postal services

provided pursuant to arrangements made with a person who provides a

universal postal service.”
10
Page 7, line 2, at end insert—

“( )
A Post Office company’s duties under this section are enforceable in civil

proceedings by the Secretary of State—

(a)
for an injunction,

(b)
for specific performance under section 45 of the Court of Session

Act 1988, or

(c)
for any other appropriate remedy or relief.”
After Clause 11
11
Insert the following new Clause—

“Annual report on postal museum collection and archive

(1)
A Royal Mail company must send to the Secretary of State each year a

report on its activities in relation to—

(a)
the British Postal Museum Collection, and

(b)
the Royal Mail Archive.

(2)
Before preparing the report, the company must consult any Post Office

company.

(3)
The Secretary of State must lay a copy of the report before Parliament.

(4)
A Royal Mail company’s duties under this section are enforceable in civil

proceedings by the Secretary of State—

(a)
for an injunction,

(b)
for specific performance under section 45 of the Court of Session

Act 1988, or

(c)
for any other appropriate remedy or relief.

(5)
This section applies irrespective of whether the British Postal Museum

Collection or the Royal Mail Archive alters the name by which it is known

or forms part of a wider collection or archive.”
Clause 21
12
Page 11, line 40, at end insert—

3

“( )
For the purposes of this section as it applies in relation to the transfer of

assets after the relevant time by virtue of a transfer order—

(a)
treat the assets as if they had been transferred at the relevant time,

but

(b)
disregard so much of the assets as were transferred to reflect the fact

that the assets were not actually transferred at the relevant time.”
Clause 23
13
Page 13, line 6, at end insert—

“(2)
Information that—

(a)
relates to pensions or other benefits under the RMPP or a new

public scheme, or

(b)
relates to the administration of the RMPP or a new public scheme

in respect of those pensions or other benefits,


may be shared among relevant persons for the purpose of facilitating the

administration of the RMPP or new public scheme.

(3)
“Relevant persons” means—

(a)
the Secretary of State,

(b)
any person who administers, or exercises functions under, a new

public scheme,

(c)
the trustee of the RMPP,

(d)
any person who exercises functions on behalf of the trustee of the

RMPP, or

(e)
any person who is or has been an employer of a qualifying member

of the RMPP.

(4)
In the event that a section of the RMPP is constituted as a separate pension

scheme the members of which consist of or include persons who are

qualifying members of the RMPP—

(a)
any reference in subsection (2) to the RMPP includes that separate

pension scheme, and

(b)
any reference in subsection (3) to the trustee of the RMPP includes

the trustees or managers of that separate pension scheme.”
Clause 24
14
Page 13, line 17, at end insert—

“( )
Any order under this Part may provide for it (or any of its provisions) to

come into force on a specified day.

( )
A “specified day” means a day specified in an order made by the Secretary

of State under this subsection (and different days may be specified for

different purposes).


Subsections (1) to (3) do not apply to an order under this subsection.”
Clause 27
15
Page 15, line 3, at end insert—

“(ca)
a notification condition (see section (Notification condition)),”

4

Clause 28
16
Page 15, line 17, at end insert “before the end of a reasonable period and for its

provision to continue to be efficient at all subsequent times”
17
Page 15, line 17, at end insert—

“( )
The reference in subsection (3)(a) to the need for the provision of a

universal postal service to be financially sustainable includes the need for

a reasonable commercial rate of return for any universal service provider

on any expenditure incurred by it for the purpose of, or in connection with,

the provision by it of a universal postal service.”
18
Page 15, line 17, at end insert—

“( )
In subsection (3)(b) “a reasonable period” means such period beginning

with the day on which the provisions of this Part come generally into force

as OFCOM consider, in all the circumstances, to be reasonable.”
19
Page 15, line 21, at end insert—

“( )
The Secretary of State may direct OFCOM to take, or refrain from taking,

specified action for the purpose of securing that, in the opinion of the

Secretary of State, sufficient access points are provided throughout the

United Kingdom to meet the interests of the public.

( )
The duty imposed on OFCOM as a result of subsection (4) is subject to any

direction given under this section.

( )
The action that may be specified in a direction under this section includes

the imposition of a regulatory condition consisting of or including

provision specified in the direction.

( )
Before giving a direction under this section, the Secretary of State must

consult OFCOM.”
After Clause 39
20
Insert the following new Clause—

“Notification condition

(1)
OFCOM may impose a notification condition on—

(a)
every person providing, or intending to provide, a service within

the scope of the universal postal service, or

(b)
every person providing, or intending to provide, a service within

the scope of the universal postal service of a specified description.

(2)
A notification condition is a condition requiring the person to give

OFCOM—

(a)
advance notice of the person’s intention to provide a letters

business on a specified scale (whether or not the person is currently

providing a letters business or any other postal service), and

(b)
where the person is already providing a letters business on a

specified scale, advance notice of the person’s intention to expand

the business by a specified extent.

(3)
A specified scale or extent may be determined by reference to any specified

factor.

5

(4)
The Secretary of State may at any time direct OFCOM to impose a

notification condition.

(5)
The direction may (but need not) specify some or all of the provision to be

contained in the condition.

(6)
Where a notification condition applies to a person at a time when the

person is not providing a postal service—

(a)
Schedule 7 (enforcement of regulatory conditions) is to have effect

as if paragraph 7(2) and (3) were omitted and as if, for the purposes

of paragraph 11, the person were providing a postal service, and

(b)
Schedule 8 (information provisions) is to have effect as if the person

were a person falling within paragraph 1(2) and as if, for the

purposes of paragraph 8, the person were providing a postal

service.

(7)
In this section—

“advance notice” means written notice given at least a specified period

of time before the person intends to do as mentioned in subsection

(2)(a) or (b),

“a letters business” means a postal service which consists in the

delivery of letters, and

“specified” means specified in the notification condition.”
Clause 42
21
Page 25, line 41, leave out “3” and insert “5”
Clause 43
22
Page 27, line 9, at end insert—

“( )
A direction under subsection (12) may not require OFCOM to make a

procurement determination at any time in the period of 10 years beginning

with the day on which this section comes into force unless the universal

service provider has agreed to the making of the determination.”
Clause 58
23
Page 36, line 36, at end insert—

“( )
An order under subsection (6) applying an enactment under which a

criminal or civil penalty could be imposed may not provide for the penalty

to be greater than that which could be imposed under the enactment.”
Clause 60
24
Page 37, line 35, leave out subsections (4) and (5)
Clause 63
25
Page 38, line 41, at end insert—

““notification condition” has the meaning given by section

(Notification condition),”
26
Page 39, line 39, at end insert—

6

“( )
Any direction given by the Secretary of State under any provision of this

Part—

(a)
must be in writing, and

(b)
may be varied or revoked by a further direction.”
Clause 80
27
Page 49, line 20, at end insert—


“An order under this subsection is subject to negative resolution

procedure.”
Schedule 12
28
Page 149, line 30, leave out paragraph 174