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| Time-limits on the imposition of penalties. |
34. - (1) No penalty shall be imposed under section 30 in respect of a contravention of a licence condition-
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(a) where a provisional order has been made but not confirmed in respect of the contravention and no final order has been made in respect of it, unless a copy of the notice under section 32(1) has been served on the licence holder no later than six months starting with the date on which the provisional order was made, |
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(b) where a provisional order has been confirmed or a final order made in respect of the contravention, unless a copy of the notice under section 32(1) has been served on the licence holder no later than three months starting with the date on which the order was confirmed or (as the case may be) made. |
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(2) No penalty shall be imposed under section 30 in respect of a contravention of a licence condition for which no provisional or final order has been made unless a copy of the notice under section 32(1) has been served on the licence holder within twelve months from the time of the contravention.
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| Interest and payments by instalment. |
35. - (1) If the whole or any portion of a penalty is not paid by the date by which it is required to be paid, the unpaid balance from time to time shall carry interest at the rate for the time being specified in section 17 of the Judgments Act 1838.
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(2) Where an application has been made under section 32(5), the penalty shall not be required to be paid until the application has been determined, withdrawn or otherwise dealt with.
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(3) If a portion of a penalty has not been paid by the date required for it by the Commission, the Commission may, where it considers it appropriate to do so, require so much of the penalty as has not already been paid to be paid immediately.
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| Appeals. |
36. - (1) This section applies if a licence holder on whom a penalty is imposed under section 30 is aggrieved by-
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(a) the imposition of the penalty, |
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(b) the amount of the penalty, or |
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(c) the date by which the penalty is required to be paid or (as the case may be) the different dates by which portions of the penalty are required to be paid. |
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(2) The licence holder may apply to the court.
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(3) If a copy of the notice under section 32(3) was served on the licence holder, the application to the court shall, subject to subsection (4), be made within the period of 42 days starting with the day on which the copy was served on the licence holder.
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(4) If the application relates to a decision of the Commission on an application by a licence holder under section 32(5), the application to the court shall be made within the period of 42 days starting with the day on which the licence holder is notified of the decision.
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(5) On an application under this section, the court may-
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(b) substitute a penalty of such lesser amount as the court considers appropriate, or |
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(c) in a case falling within subsection (1)(c), substitute for the date or dates imposed by the Commission an alternative date or dates, |
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if it considers it appropriate to do so and is satisfied of one or more of the grounds mentioned in subsection (6).
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(6) The grounds are-
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(a) that the imposition of the penalty was not within the powers of the Commission under section 30, |
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(b) that any of the requirements of section 32 or 33 have not been complied with in relation to the imposition of the penalty and the interests of the licence holder have been substantially prejudiced by the non-compliance, |
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(c) that it was unreasonable of the Commission to require the penalty to be paid by the date concerned or (as the case may be) to require portions of it to be paid by the dates concerned. |
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(7) Where an application has been made under this section, the penalty shall not be required to be paid until the application has been determined, withdrawn or otherwise dealt with.
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(8) Where the court substitutes a penalty of a lesser amount it may require the payment of interest on the substituted penalty at such rate, and from such date, as it considers appropriate.
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(9) Where the court specifies as a date by which the penalty, or a portion of the penalty, is to be paid a date before the determination of the application under this section it may require the payment of interest on the penalty, or portion, from that date at such rate as it considers appropriate.
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(10) Except as provided by this section, the validity of a penalty shall not be questioned in any legal proceedings.
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(11) In this section "the court" means-
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(a) in relation to England and Wales or Northern Ireland, the High Court, and |
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(b) in relation to Scotland, the Court of Session. |
| Recovery of penalties. |
37. Where a penalty imposed under section 30, or any portion of such a penalty, has not been paid by the date on which it is required to be paid and-
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(a) no application relating to the penalty has been made under section 36 during the period within which such an application may be made, or |
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(b) any such application which has been made has been determined, withdrawn or otherwise dealt with, |
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the Commission may recover from the licence holder, as a civil debt due to it, any of the penalty and any interest which has not been paid.
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Miscellaneous |
| Register. |
38. - (1) The Commission shall compile and maintain a register for the purposes of this Part.
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(2) The register shall be kept at such premises and in such form as the Commission considers appropriate.
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(3) The Commission shall cause the following matters to be entered in the register-
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(a) the provisions of every licence, |
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(b) every variation, revocation or surrender of a licence, |
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(c) the provisions of every direction or determination made or consent or approval given under a licence, |
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(d) the terms of every final or provisional order made or confirmed and every revocation of such an order, |
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(e) every penalty imposed under section 30 and every notice under section 32(3). |
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(4) The duty in subsection (3) does not extend to anything of which the Commission is unaware.
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(5) So far as practicable the Commission shall secure the exclusion from the register of any matter relating to the affairs of a person if the Commission considers that its inclusion would or might seriously and prejudicially affect the person's interests.
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(6) Subsection (5) does not apply if-
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(a) the person concerned consents to the matter being entered in the register, or |
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(b) the Commission considers that entering the matter in the register would be in the public interest. |
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(7) If the Secretary of State considers that entry of anything in the register would be against the public interest or any person's commercial interests, he may direct the Commission not to enter it.
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(8) The Commission shall secure that the contents of the register are available for inspection by the public-
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(a) during such hours as may be specified in an order made by the Secretary of State, and |
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(b) subject to such reasonable fees (if any) as the Commission may determine. |
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(9) If requested by any person to do so and subject to such reasonable fees (if any) as the Commission may determine, the Commission shall supply the person concerned with a copy (certified to be true) of the register or of an extract from it.
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| Directors' remuneration. |
39. - (1) This section applies to any licence holder which is a company.
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(2) As soon as practicable after the end of each financial year of the company it shall make a statement to the Commission-
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(a) disclosing whether or not remuneration has been paid or become due during that financial year to the directors of the company as a result of arrangements falling within subsection (3), and |
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(b) where such remuneration has been paid or become due, describing the arrangements and the remuneration. |
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(3) Arrangements fall within this subsection if they are arrangements for linking the remuneration of the directors to standards of performance-
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(a) specified for the company in its licence, or determined for the company by or under the licence, or |
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(b) set or agreed to by the company, |
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in relation to the provision of services authorised or required by the licence.
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(4) A description under subsection (2)(b) shall include-
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(a) a statement of when the arrangements were made, |
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(b) a description of the standards of performance in question, |
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(c) an explanation of the means by which the standards of performance are assessed, and |
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(d) an explanation of how the remuneration was calculated. |
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(5) The statement required by subsection (2) shall also state-
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(a) whether or not there are in force in respect of the financial year during which the statement is made arrangements falling within subsection (3), |
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(b) if not, whether the company intends that such arrangements will be in force at some time during that financial year, |
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and if there are, or it is intended that there will be, such arrangements in force the statement shall describe those arrangements.
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(6) A description under subsection (5) shall-
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(a) include the matters mentioned in subsection (4)(a) to (c), and |
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(b) where the arrangements described are different from any arrangements described under subsection (2)(b), state the likely effect of those differences on the remuneration of each director of the company. |
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(7) The statement required by subsection (2) shall be made to the Commission in such manner as may be required by the Commission.
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(8) The statement required by subsection (2)-
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(a) shall be published by the company making the statement in such manner as it considers will secure adequate publicity for the statement, and |
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(b) may be published by the Commission in such manner as it may consider appropriate. |
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(9) The duty of a company under this section applies in relation to any person who has at any time been a director of the company.
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(10) In this section-
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"company" means a company within the meaning of the Companies Act 1985, or the Companies (Northern Ireland) Order 1986, which is limited by shares, |
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"remuneration" in relation to a director of a company- |
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(a) means any form of payment, consideration or other benefit (including pension benefit) paid or due to or in respect of the director, and
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(b) includes remuneration in respect of any of his services while a director of the company.
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| Free services for the blind and partially sighted. |
40. - (1) The Secretary of State may direct the Commission to impose, as a condition of a relevant licence, a requirement that the licence holder provide such free postal services as may be specified in the direction to such descriptions of blind or partially sighted persons as may be so specified.
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(2) The requirement shall not come into force unless-
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(a) the Secretary of State directs the Commission to bring it into force, and |
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(b) the Commission gives notice of the direction to the licence holder. |
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(3) The Secretary of State shall consult the Commission and the Council before giving any direction under this section.
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(4) In this section "relevant licence" means a licence to be granted which is to require the person holding it to provide a universal postal service or part of such a service.
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