S.C.B.
Amendment Paper as at
Thursday 16th March 2000
STANDING COMMITTEE B
POSTAL SERVICES BILL
NOTE
The Amendments have been arranged in accordance with the Order to be proposed by Mr Alan Johnson.
Mr Alan Johnson
To move, That the remainder of the Bill be considered in the following order, namely, Clauses 68 to 79, Schedules 4 and 5, Clauses 80 to 92, Clauses 94 to 100, Clauses 102 to 105, new Clauses, new Schedules, Clause 93, Schedule 6, Clause 101, Schedules 7 and 8.
Mr Alan Johnson
151
Clause 68, page 37, line 7, at end insert 'or a mail-bag'.
Mr Alan Johnson
152
Clause 69, page 37, line 17, at end insert 'or a mail-bag'.
Mr Alan Johnson
153
Clause 73, page 39, line 21, leave out from 'scale' to the end of line 22.
Mr Alan Johnson
154
Schedule 4, page 67, line 16, after 'continue' insert 'to be'.
Mr Alan Johnson
155
Schedule 4, page 70, line 11, after 'continue' insert 'to be'.
Mr Alan Johnson
156
Schedule 5, page 71, line 48, leave out 'Rural' and insert 'Regional'.
Mr Alan Johnson
157
Clause 82, page 45, line 20, leave out 'postal'.
Mr Alan Johnson
158
Clause 84, page 45, line 39, at end insert 'or the Clerk of the Scottish Parliament'.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
33
Clause 86, page 48, line 4, leave out from 'require' to 'to' in line 5 and insert 'a universal service provider or any licence holder under Part II who is not a universal service provider'.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
34
Clause 86, page 48, line 14, at end insert—
'(f) require a universal service provider to keep separate accounts for each of the postal services which may not be provided unless he is a licence holder under Part II and any other postal services, and the accounts for any other postal services shall clearly distinguish between services which are part of a universal postal service and services which are not,
(g) prohibit cross-subsidies by a universal service provider between the postal services which may not be provided unless he is a licence holder under Part II and any other postal services which are not part of a universal postal service.'.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
35
Clause 91, page 49, line 38, after 'any', insert 'relevant'.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
36
Clause 91, page 49, line 38, at end insert—
'(1B) In this section "relevant subsidiary" has the same meaning as in section 52 of the Postal Services Act 2000.'.
Mr Alan Johnson
145
Clause 91, page 49, line 44, after 'or' insert ', where the loan is to be'.
Mr Alan Johnson
146
Clause 91, page 49, line 45, leave out from 'sterling' to the end of the line and insert ', in that currency or in sterling.'.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
37
Clause 91, page 50, line 7, after 'other', insert 'relevant'.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
38
Clause 91, page 50, leave out lines 10 and 11.
Mrs Angela Browning
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Nick Gibb
39
Clause 91, page 50, line 11, at end add—
'(7) After section 74(2) of that Act there shall be inserted—
"(2A) In this section 'relevant subsidiary' has the same meaning as in section 52 of the Postal Services Act 2000.".'.
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Richard Page
119
Clause 92, page 50, line 16, at end insert 'and—
'(c) make provision for any person to seek and secure any reasonable change in their details'.
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Richard Page
120
Clause 92, page 50, line 16, at end insert—
'(1A) In the File—
(a) each address shall include a county; and
(b) each postcode shall reflect the county in which the addressee resides, except in as much as the efficiency of sorting addresses near county boundaries requires reference to a neighbouring county on the official address'.
Mr Alan Johnson
147
Clause 96, page 52, line 19, after '59,' insert '[Further provisions relating to the capital structure of the Post Office company],'.
Mr Alan Johnson
159
Clause 99, page 53, line 9, at end insert 'and includes an enactment comprised in, or in subordinate legislation under, an Act of Parliament, whenever passed or made'.
Mr Alan Duncan
Mr Richard Page
121
Clause 99, page 53, line 17, at end insert ', but shall exclude any communication which has been converted into a physical form by a postal operator from electronic data transmitted to him by means of a telecommunications system'.
Mr Alan Johnson
148
Clause 104, page 56, line 24, after second 'to' insert '90, sections 92 and'.
Mr Alan Johnson
149
Clause 104, page 56, line 27, at end insert—
'( ) Section 91 shall come into force at the end of the period of two months beginning with the day on which this Act is passed.'.
NEW CLAUSES
Further provisions relating to the capital structure of the Post Office company
Mr Alan Johnson
NC3
To move the following Clause:—
'.—(1) If the Secretary of State so directs, the Post Office company shall be taken to have assumed a debt to the Secretary of State of such amount as may be specified in the direction.
(2) The terms of any such debt, including the terms as to the payment of interest and repayment, shall be such as the Secretary of State may from time to time determine.
(3) The Post Office company shall issue such debt securities of the company as the Secretary of State may direct; and any such securities shall, as the Secretary of State may direct, be issued to the Treasury or the Secretary of State.
(4) Debt securities to be issued in pursuance of subsection (3) shall be issued at such time or times, and on such terms, as the Secretary of State may direct.
(5) Subsections (3) and (4) are without prejudice to any power conferred by section 52.
(6) The Secretary of State may by order repeal this section.
(7) The Secretary of State—
(a) shall not exercise any power under this section without the consent of the Treasury or before the appointed day, and
(b) shall, before exercising any such power, consult the Post Office company.
(8) In this Part "debt securities" means any instrument creating or acknowledging indebtedness which is issued by a company including, in particular, debentures, loan stock, bonds and certificates of deposit.'.
Validity of enforcement orders
Mr Alan Johnson
NC4
To move the following Clause:—
'.—(1) This section applies if a licence holder to whom a final or provisional order relates is aggrieved by the order and wants to question its validity on the ground that—
(a) its making or confirmation was not within the powers conferred by section 14, 15 or (as the case may be) 16, or
(b) any of the requirements of sections 18 and 19 have not been complied with in relation to the making or confirmation of the order.
(2) The licence holder may apply to the court.
(3) If a copy of the order as made or confirmed was served on the licence holder the application to the court shall be made within the period of 42 days starting with the day on which the copy was served on the licence holder.
(4) On an application under this section the court may quash the order or any provision of it if the court considers it appropriate to do so and is satisfied that—
(a) the making or confirmation of the order was not within the powers conferred by section 14, 15 or (as the case may be) 16, or
(b) any of the requirements of sections 18 and 19 have not been complied with in relation to the making or confirmation of the order and the interests of the licence holder have been substantially prejudiced by the non-compliance.
(5) Where an application has been made under this section, the licence holder concerned shall not be required to comply with the order to which the application relates until the application has been determined, withdrawn or otherwise dealt with; and section 20 shall be construed accordingly.
(6) Except as provided by this section, the validity of a final or provisional order shall not be questioned in any legal proceedings.
(7) In this section "the court" means,
(a) in relation to England and Wales or Northern Ireland, the High Court,
(b) in relation to Scotland, the Court of Session.'.
