Postal Services Bill [HL]

House of Commons

Session 2008 - 09
Internet Publications
Other Bills before Parliament

Postal Services Bill [HL]

Postal Services Bill [HL]
Part 1 — Restructuring of Royal Mail group
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Ownership of a company
(1)
The proportion of a company owned by the Crown or any other person is
whichever of the following is smallest—
(a)
the proportion of the company’s issued share capital owned by the
person;
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(b)
the proportion of voting rights in the company held by the person;
(c)
the proportion of the company’s distributable assets to which the
person is entitled;
(d)
the proportion of the company’s distributable profits to which the
person is entitled.
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(2)
For the purposes of determining the proportion of any company owned by the
Crown, property and rights of the Secretary of State or the Treasury (or a
nominee of either of them) are to be regarded as property and rights of the
Crown.
(3)
The reference in subsection (1)(b) to “voting rights in the company” is to the
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rights conferred on members to vote at general meetings of the company on all
or substantially all matters.
(4)
In subsection (1)(c) “distributable assets” means the assets that are (in the event
of a winding up of the company or in any other circumstances) distributable to
members of the company.
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(5)
In subsection (1)(d) “distributable profits” means the profits that are (in any
circumstances) available for distribution to members of the company.
(6)
In the application of this section to a company that does not have a share
capital, subsection (1)(a) is omitted.
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Employee share schemes
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The requirement that a Royal Mail company be publicly owned does not
prevent the establishment of an employee share scheme provided the Crown
continues to own (directly or indirectly) more than half of the company.
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Report on agreement to dispose of shares in a Royal Mail company etc
(1)
This section applies to any agreement that would (or could) reduce the
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proportion owned (directly or indirectly) by the Crown of a Royal Mail
company.
(2)
Where such an agreement is entered into, the Secretary of State must lay a
report on the agreement before Parliament as soon as reasonably practicable
after the agreement has been entered into.
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(3)
The report must state—
(a)
the principal objectives intended to be achieved by the entering into
and carrying out of an agreement to which this section applies, and
(b)
the extent to which the Secretary of State considers that the carrying out
of the agreement mentioned in subsection (2) will achieve those
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objectives.
(4)
The report must state—
(a)
the principal criteria applied in deciding whether an agreement to
which this section applies should be entered into, and

Postal Services Bill [HL]
Part 1 — Restructuring of Royal Mail group
7

(b)
the extent to which the Secretary of State considers that the agreement
mentioned in subsection (2) meets those criteria.
(5)
The report must contain a summary of the terms considered by the Secretary
of State to be the principal terms of the agreement.
Supplementary provisions
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Annual report on post office network
(1)
A Post Office company must send to the Secretary of State each year a report
on its network of post offices.
(2)
The report must give details of—
(a)
the number and location of the company’s post offices,
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(b)
the postal services, services provided under arrangements with a
government department and other services that are provided at those
post offices, and
(c)
the accessibility of those post offices to users of those services.
(3)
The report must, in particular, provide information about the accessibility of
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the company’s post offices to—
(a)
individuals living in rural areas,
(b)
individuals living in urban areas,
(c)
small businesses,
(d)
disadvantaged individuals, individuals with low incomes and
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individuals with disabilities, and
(e)
individuals who are elderly.
(4)
The report must contain such other information as the Secretary of State may
from time to time require.
(5)
The Secretary of State must lay a copy of the report before Parliament.
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(6)
References in this section to a company’s post offices (or network of post
offices) are to those post offices (whether or not owned or operated by the
company) that the company is engaged in providing.
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Directions
(1)
This section applies to directions under this Part.
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(2)
A direction must be in writing.
(3)
A direction may be varied or revoked by a further direction.
(4)
A person to whom a direction has been given has a duty to comply with it.
(5)
That duty is enforceable in civil proceedings by the person by whom the
direction was given—
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(a)
for an injunction,
(b)
for specific performance of a statutory duty under section 45 of the
Court of Session Act 1988 (c. 36), or
(c)
for any other appropriate remedy or relief.

Postal Services Bill [HL]
Part 2 — Royal Mail Pension Plan
8

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Interpretation of Part 1
(1)
In this Part—
“company” means any body corporate;
“the original holding company” means the company that was nominated
under section 62 of the Postal Services Act 2000 (c. 26) (transfer of
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property etc to nominated company);
“owned in its entirety by the Crown”, in relation to a company, has the
meaning given by section 10;
“post office” means premises in the United Kingdom from which postal
services, or services provided under arrangements with a government
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department, are provided directly to the public;
“Post Office company” has the meaning given by section 2;
“publicly owned”, in relation to a company, has the meaning given by
section 10;
“Royal Mail company” has the meaning given by section 4;
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“securities” has the meaning given by section 82(1) of the Postal Services
Act 2000;
“shares” include stock;
“share rights”, in relation to any shares, means rights to subscribe for (or
acquire) the shares and any other rights in connection with the shares;
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“subsidiary” has the meaning given by section 1159 of the Companies Act
2006 (c. 46);
“universal postal service” has the same meaning as in Part 3 (see section
59(2)(a)).
(2)
In this Part—
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(a)
references (except in Schedule 2) to companies being in the same
“group” are to be read in accordance with section 1161(5) of the
Companies Act 2006;
(b)
references to a company that is a “parent” of another company are to be
read in accordance with section 1162(2) of that Act.
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Part 2
Royal Mail Pension Plan
Introduction
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Introduction
(1)
In this Part—
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“the RMPP” means the Royal Mail Pension Plan,
“qualifying member of the RMPP” means a person who falls within any
description of member of the RMPP prescribed for the purposes of this
Part,
“the qualifying time” means the time immediately before such date as
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may be prescribed (which may be before the passing of this Act),
“qualifying accrued rights” means—
(a)
any right which, at the qualifying time, has accrued to or in
respect of a qualifying member of the RMPP to future benefits
under the RMPP,
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Postal Services Bill [HL]
Part 2 — Royal Mail Pension Plan
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(b)
any entitlement under the RMPP to the present payment of a
pension or other benefit which a qualifying member of the
RMPP has at the qualifying time, or
(c)
any entitlement to benefits, or rights to future benefits, under
the RMPP which a person who has survived a qualifying
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member of the RMPP has at the qualifying time in respect of the
member.
(2)
For the purposes of the definition of “qualifying accrued rights”—
(a)
references to pensions or other benefits (including future benefits) do
not include money purchase benefits within the meaning given by
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section 181 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993 (c. 48) but, subject to that,
do include benefits attributable to additional voluntary contributions,
and
(b)
references to a right include a pension credit right within the meaning
given by section 124(1) of the Pensions Act 1995 (c. 26).
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(3)
In the event that qualifying members of the RMPP include any person (“P”)
who is in pensionable service under the RMPP after the qualifying time—
(a)
the qualifying accrued rights in respect of P, and
(b)
the amounts payable in respect of those rights,

are to be determined for the purposes of this Part on the assumption that P had
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opted, immediately before the qualifying time, to terminate that service.
Powers exercisable
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Transfer of qualifying accrued rights to new public scheme
(1)
The Secretary of State may by order establish a scheme (a “new public scheme”)
which, in respect of pensionable service under the RMPP before the qualifying
25
time, provides for pensions or other benefits to be payable to or in respect of
persons who are or have been qualifying members of the RMPP.
(2)
The Secretary of State may by order make provision for the transfer of
qualifying accrued rights to a new public scheme (without the need for any
approval or consent to the transfer).
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(3)
A new public scheme may—
(a)
include provision for increasing in particular circumstances the
amounts payable in respect of qualifying accrued rights,
(b)
include provision in relation to any persons who are active members of
the RMPP which differs from the provision made in relation to persons
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who are deferred members of the RMPP, and
(c)
include provision for the payment of transfer values.
(4)
An order under this section may include provision for treating a new public
scheme as an occupational pension scheme for the purposes of any provision
made by or under any enactment specified, or of a description specified, in the
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order.
(5)
An order under this section may include provision for—
(a)
treating a new public scheme as a salary-related contracted out scheme
for the purposes of Part 3 of the Pension Schemes Act 1993, and
(b)
applying any provision of that Part with modifications.
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Postal Services Bill [HL]
Part 2 — Royal Mail Pension Plan
10

(6)
Provision made by an order under this section may have retrospective effect.
(7)
The Secretary of State may—
(a)
provide for a new public scheme to be administered by any person, and
(b)
delegate to any person any functions exercisable by the Secretary of
State under a new public scheme.
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Division of the RMPP into different sections
(1)
The Secretary of State may by order make provision for—
(a)
the division of the RMPP into different sections,
(b)
the participation of different companies in the different sections, and
(c)
the allocation of assets, rights, liabilities or obligations between the
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different sections.
(2)
If no order has been made under section 19 establishing a new public scheme,
an order under this section may create a section of the RMPP in respect of
qualifying accrued rights (a “qualifying section of the RMPP”).
(3)
An order under this section may include provision in respect of a qualifying
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section of the RMPP for—
(a)
requiring the Secretary of State to make periodic payments to the
trustee of the RMPP to enable the discharge of the liabilities in respect
of qualifying accrued rights as they fall due, and
(b)
determining the times at which those payments are to be made.
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(4)
An order under this section may include provision in respect of a qualifying
section of the RMPP for—
(a)
increasing in prescribed circumstances the amounts payable under
subsection (3),
(b)
securing that any relevant discretionary powers are exercisable only
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with the consent of the Secretary of State, and
(c)
authorising the Secretary of State to make payments to the trustee of the
RMPP in cases where those powers are exercised.
(5)
For this purpose a “relevant discretionary power” means—
(a)
any power under the RMPP in so far as it is exercisable to make
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payments, or increase the amount of payments, to or in respect of
qualifying members of the RMPP, or
(b)
any power to amend the RMPP in so far as it is exercisable in relation
to qualifying accrued rights.
(6)
An order under this section may include provision for—
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(a)
securing that, in any case where there is a qualifying section of the
RMPP, the RMPP continues to be regarded as a salary-related
contracted out scheme for the purposes of Part 3 of the Pension
Schemes Act 1993 (c. 48), and
(b)
the manner in which questions arising under the order in respect of a
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qualifying section of the RMPP are to be determined.
(7)
Provision made by an order under this section may have retrospective effect.