Office of Public Sector Information
PART 3 continued CHAPTER 4 continued
(1) The regulatory regime for every service to which this section applies includes the conditions that OFCOM consider appropriate for securing that the relevant international obligations of the United Kingdom are complied with.
(2) In this section “relevant international obligations of the United Kingdom” means the international obligations of the United Kingdom which have been notified to OFCOM by the Secretary of State for the purposes of this section.
(3) This section applies to the following services—
(a) any Channel 3 service;
(b) Channel 4;
(c) Channel 5;
(d) the public teletext service;
(e) any television licensable content service;
(f) any digital television programme service;
(g) any additional television service;
(h) any digital additional television service;
(i) any restricted television service.
(4) The conditions included in any licence in accordance with the other provisions of this Chapter are in addition to any conditions included in that licence in pursuance of this section and have effect subject to them.
(1) If it appears to the Secretary of State or any other Minister of the Crown to be appropriate to do so in connection with any of his functions, the Secretary of State or that Minister may at any time by notice require OFCOM to give a direction under subsection (2).
(2) A direction under this subsection is a direction to the holders of the Broadcasting Act licences specified in the notice under subsection (1) to include an announcement so specified in their licensed services.
(3) The direction may specify the times at which the announcement is to be broadcast or otherwise transmitted.
(4) Where the holder of a Broadcasting Act licence includes an announcement in his licensed service in pursuance of a direction under this section, he may announce that he is doing so in pursuance of such a direction.
(5) The Secretary of State may, at any time, by notice require OFCOM to direct the holders of the Broadcasting Act licences specified in the notice to refrain from including in their licensed services any matter, or description of matter, specified in the notice.
(6) Where—
(a) OFCOM have given the holder of a Broadcasting Act licence a direction in accordance with a notice under subsection (5),
(b) in consequence of the revocation by the Secretary of State of such a notice, OFCOM have revoked such a direction, or
(c) such a notice has expired,
the holder of the licence in question may include in the licensed service an announcement of the giving or revocation of the direction or of the expiration of the notice, as the case may be.
(7) OFCOM must comply with every requirement contained in a notice under this section.
(8) The powers conferred by this section are in addition to any powers specifically conferred on the Secretary of State by or under this Act or any other enactment.
(9) In this section “Minister of the Crown” includes the Treasury.
(1) The regulatory regime for every service to which this section applies includes the conditions that OFCOM consider appropriate for requiring the licence holder to make arrangements for promoting, in relation to employment with the licence holder, equality of opportunity—
(a) between men and women; and
(b) between persons of different racial groups.
(2) That regime includes conditions requiring the licence holder to make arrangements for promoting, in relation to employment with the licence holder, the equalisation of opportunities for disabled persons.
(3) The regulatory regime for every service to which this section applies includes the conditions that OFCOM consider appropriate for requiring the licence holder to make arrangements for the training and retraining of persons whom he employs, in or in connection with—
(a) the provision of the licensed service; or
(b) the making of programmes to be included in that service.
(4) The conditions imposed by virtue of subsections (1) to (3) must contain provision, in relation to the arrangements made in pursuance of those conditions, requiring the person providing the service in question—
(a) to take appropriate steps to make those affected by the arrangements aware of them (including such publication of the arrangements as may be required in accordance with the conditions);
(b) from time to time, to review the arrangements; and
(c) from time to time (and at least annually) to publish, in such manner as he considers appropriate, his observations on the current operation and effectiveness of the arrangements.
(5) The conditions imposed by virtue of this section may include provision for treating obligations to make the arrangements mentioned in subsections (1) to (3), or to do anything mentioned in subsection (4), as discharged where a member of a group of companies to which the licence holder belongs—
(a) has made the required arrangements in relation to employment with the licence holder; or
(b) has done anything required by subsection (4) in relation to those arrangements.
(6) This section applies to a service if—
(a) it is a service the provision of which is authorised by a Broadcasting Act licence; and
(b) the requirements of both subsections (7) and (8) are satisfied in the case of that service.
(7) The requirements of this subsection are satisfied in the case of a service provided by a person if—
(a) that person employs, or is likely to employ, more than the threshold number of individuals in connection with the provision of licensed services; or
(b) the threshold number is exceeded by the aggregate number of individuals who are, or are likely to be, employed in that connection by members of a group of companies comprising that person and one or more other bodies corporate.
(8) The requirements of this subsection are satisfied in the case of a service if the licence authorising the provision of that service authorises either that service or another service authorised by that licence to be provided on a number of days in any year which exceeds the threshold number of days (whether or not the service is in fact provided on those days).
(9) In this section—
“disabled” has the same meaning as in the Disability Discrimination Act 1995 (c. 50);
“licensed service”, in relation to an employee or likely employee of a person, means a service the provision of which—
by that person, or
by a body corporate which is a member of the same group of companies as that person,
is authorised by a Broadcasting Act licence;
“racial group” has the same meaning as in the Race Relations Act 1976 (c. 74) or, in Northern Ireland, the Race Relations (Northern Ireland) Order 1997 (S.I. 1997/869 (N.I. 6));
“the threshold number” means—
in relation to individuals, twenty; and
in relation to days, thirty-one.
(10) For the purposes of this section a person is a member of a group of companies to which a person licensed to provide a service belongs if, and only if, both of them are bodies corporate and either—
(a) one of them is controlled by the other; or
(b) both of them are controlled by the same person.
(11) In subsection (10) “controlled” has the same meaning as in Part 1 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act.
(12) The Secretary of State may, by order—
(a) amend subsection (1) by adding any other form of equality of opportunity that he considers appropriate;
(b) amend the definition of “the threshold number” in subsection (9).
(13) No order is to be made containing provision authorised by subsection (12) unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House.
Schedule 12 (which provides for the imposition on the BBC and the Welsh Authority of obligations corresponding to obligations included in the regulatory regime for licensed providers) shall have effect.
(1) The Secretary of State may carry out a review of the performance by the Welsh Authority of their duty to secure that each of the following public service remits—
(a) that for S4C;
(b) that for S4C Digital; and
(c) that for each of the television programme services provided by them with the approval of the Secretary of State under section 205,
is fulfilled in relation the services to which it applies.
(2) The first review carried out under this section—
(a) shall be a review relating to the period since the passing of this Act; and
(b) must not be carried out before the end of the period of five years beginning with the day of the passing of this Act.
(3) A subsequent review—
(a) shall be a review relating to the period since the end of the period to which the previous review related; and
(b) must not be carried out less than five years after the day of the publication of the report of the previous review.
(4) On a review under this section the Secretary of State—
(a) shall consult the National Assembly for Wales and the Welsh Authority on the matters under review; and
(b) shall have regard to their opinions when reaching his conclusions.
(5) The Secretary of State shall also consult such other persons as he considers are likely to be affected by whether, and in what manner, the Welsh Authority perform the duty mentioned in subsection (1).
(6) As soon as practicable after the conclusion of a review under this section the Secretary of State must publish a report of his conclusions.
(1) This section applies if the Secretary of State’s conclusions on a review under section 339 include a finding—
(a) that the Welsh Authority has failed in any respect to perform their duty to secure that the public service remit for a service mentioned in that section is fulfilled; and
(b) that there is no reasonable excuse for the failure.
(2) The Secretary of State may give the Welsh Authority general or specific directions requiring them to take the steps that he considers will ensure that the Authority perform their duty properly in future.
(3) The Secretary of State is not to give a direction under this section unless a draft of the proposed direction has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House.
(4) Before laying a proposed direction before Parliament, the Secretary of State must consult the Welsh Authority.
(5) It shall be the duty of the Welsh Authority to comply with every direction under this section.
(1) This section applies to the following requirements so far as they are imposed on the Welsh Authority in relation to services provided by them—
(a) the requirements imposed by or under paragraphs 7 and 8 of Schedule 12 (programme quotas);
(b) the requirements imposed by paragraph 9(1) and (3) of that Schedule (news and current affairs);
(c) the requirements imposed by paragraph 10 of that Schedule (code relating to programme commissioning) or by a direction under sub-paragraph (3)(d) of that paragraph;
(d) the requirement imposed by virtue of paragraph 12 of that Schedule to comply with standards set under section 319, so far as that requirement relates to standards set otherwise than for the purpose of securing the objectives set out in subsection (2)(c) or (d) of that section;
(e) the requirements imposed by paragraphs 14 and 16 of that Schedule (advertising or sponsorship) to comply with a direction under those paragraphs;
(f) the requirement imposed by paragraph 17 of that Schedule (observance of the fairness code);
(g) the requirement imposed by paragraph 19 of that Schedule (publicising complaints procedure);
(h) the requirement imposed by paragraph 20 of that Schedule (monitoring of programmes);
(i) the requirement imposed by paragraph 21 of that Schedule (international obligations) to comply with a direction under that paragraph;
(j) the requirement under paragraph 22 of that Schedule (assistance for disabled people) to comply with the code for the time being in force under section 303;
(k) the requirement to comply with a direction under section 119(1) of the 1996 Act (directions in respect of fairness matters).
(2) If OFCOM are satisfied that there has been a contravention of a requirement to which this section applies, they may serve on the Welsh Authority a notice requiring the Authority, within the specified period, to pay OFCOM a specified penalty.
(3) The amount of the penalty must not exceed £250,000.
(4) OFCOM are not to serve a notice on the Welsh Authority under this section unless they have given them a reasonable opportunity of making representations to OFCOM about the matters appearing to OFCOM to provide grounds for the service of the notice.
(5) An exercise by OFCOM of their powers under this section does not preclude any exercise by them of their powers under paragraph 15 of Schedule 12 in respect of the same contravention.
(6) The Secretary of State may by order substitute a different sum for the sum for the time being specified in subsection (3).
(7) No order is to be made containing provision authorised by subsection (6) unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House.
In paragraph 13 of Schedule 6 to the 1990 Act (annual report of the Welsh Authority)—
(a) in sub-paragraph (2), the words from “and shall include” onwards shall be omitted; and
(b) after that sub-paragraph there shall be inserted—
“(3) The report shall also—
(a) set out every contravention notification given by OFCOM to the Authority during the year; and
(b) include such other information (including information relating to the Authority’s financial position) as the Secretary of State may from time to time direct.
(4) In sub-paragraph (3), “contravention notification” means a notification of a determination by OFCOM of a contravention by the Authority of any obligation imposed by or under this Act, the 1996 Act or Part 3 of the Communications Act 2003.”
(1) It shall be the duty of the Welsh Authority to comply with every direction given to them by OFCOM to provide OFCOM with information falling within subsection (2).
(2) The information that the Welsh Authority may be directed to provide is any information which OFCOM may reasonably require for the purposes of carrying out their functions in relation to the Welsh Authority under this Act, the 1990 Act or the 1996 Act.
(3) Information that is required to be provided by a direction under this section must be provided in such manner and at such times as may be required by the direction.
(1) Sections 40 and 109 of the 1990 Act (power to direct licensee to broadcast correction or apology) shall be amended as follows.
(2) For “apology”, wherever occurring, there shall be substituted “a statement of findings”.
(3) After subsection (5), there shall be inserted—
“(6) For the purposes of this section a statement of findings, in relation to a case in which OFCOM are satisfied that the holder of a licence has contravened the conditions of his licence, is a statement of OFCOM’s findings in relation to that contravention.”
Schedule 13 (which modifies the maximum penalties that may be imposed on the holders of Broadcasting Act licences) shall have effect.
(1) This section applies to the following amounts—
(a) any amount payable to OFCOM under a Broadcasting Act licence;
(b) the amount of a penalty imposed by OFCOM under Part 1 or 3 of the 1990 Act, Part 1 or 2 of the 1996 Act or this Part of this Act.
(2) Every amount to which this section applies shall be recoverable by OFCOM as a debt due to them from the person obliged to pay it.
(3) The following liabilities—
(a) a person’s liability to have a penalty imposed on him under Part 1 or 3 of the 1990 Act, Part 1 or 2 of the 1996 Act or this Part in respect of acts or omissions of his occurring while he was the holder of a Broadcasting Act licence, and
(b) a liability of a person as the holder of such a licence to pay an amount to which this section applies,
are not affected by that person’s Broadcasting Act licence having ceased (for any reason) to be in force before the imposition of the penalty or the payment of that amount.
(1) OFCOM are not to fix a tariff under section 4(3) or 87(3) of the 1990 Act or under section 4(3) or 43(3) of the 1996 Act (tariffs for fees payable under Broadcasting Act licences for recovering OFCOM’s costs) unless—
(a) at the time they do so, there is in force a statement of the principles that OFCOM are proposing to apply in fixing that tariff; and
(b) the tariff is fixed in accordance with those principles.
(2) Those principles must be such as appear to OFCOM to be likely to secure, on the basis of such estimates of the likely costs that it is practicable for them to make—
(a) that the aggregate amount of the Broadcasting Act licence fees that are required to be paid to OFCOM during a financial year is sufficient to enable them to meet, but does not exceed, the cost to them of the carrying out during that year of their functions relating to the regulation of broadcasting;
(b) that the requirement imposed by virtue of paragraph (a) is satisfied by the application to such fees of tariffs that are justifiable and proportionate to the matters in respect of which they are imposed; and
(c) that the relationship between meeting the cost of carrying out those functions and the tariffs applied to such fees is transparent.
(3) Before making or revising a statement of principles OFCOM must consult such of the persons who, in OFCOM’s opinion, are likely to be affected by those principles as they think fit.
(4) The making or revision of a statement of principles for the purposes of this section has to be by the publication of the statement, or revised statement, in such manner as OFCOM consider appropriate for bringing it to the attention of the persons who, in their opinion, are likely to be affected by it.
(5) As soon as reasonably practicable after the end of each financial year, OFCOM must publish a statement setting out, for that year—
(a) the aggregate amount received by them during that year in respect of Broadcasting Act licence fees required to be paid during that year;
(b) the aggregate amount outstanding and likely to be paid or recovered in respect of Broadcasting Act licence fees that are required to be so paid; and
(c) the cost to OFCOM of the carrying out during that year of their functions relating to the regulation of broadcasting.
(6) Any deficit or surplus shown (after applying this subsection for all previous years) by a statement under subsection (5) shall be—
(a) carried forward; and
(b) taken into account in determining what is required to satisfy the requirement imposed by virtue of subsection (2)(a) in relation to the following year.
(7) References in this section to OFCOM’s functions relating to the regulation of broadcasting do not include references to any of their functions in relation to the BBC or the Welsh Authority.
(8) In this section—
“Broadcasting Act licence fee” means a fee required to be paid to OFCOM in pursuance of conditions included in a Broadcasting Act licence under any of the following provisions—
section 4(1)(b) or 87(1)(c) of the 1990 Act; or
section 4(1)(b) or 43(1)(c) of the 1996 Act;
“financial year” means a period of twelve months ending with 31st March.
(1) In Part 2 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act (disqualification from holding licences), paragraphs (a) and (b) of paragraph 1(1) (individuals and bodies from outside the member States) shall cease to have effect.
(2) In sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 2 of that Part (disqualification of religious bodies etc.), for the words before paragraph (a) there shall be substituted—
“2 (1) The following persons are disqualified persons in relation only to licences falling within sub-paragraph (1A)—”.
(3) For sub-paragraphs (2) and (3) of that paragraph there shall be substituted—
“(1A) A licence falls within this sub-paragraph if it is—
(a) a Channel 3 licence;
(b) a Channel 5 licence;
(c) a national sound broadcasting licence;
(d) a public teletext licence;
(e) an additional television service licence;
(f) a television multiplex licence; or
(g) a radio multiplex licence.
(1B) In this paragraph—
“additional television service licence” means a licence under Part 1 of this Act to provide an additional television service within the meaning of Part 3 of the Communications Act 2003;
“Channel 3 licence” and “Channel 5 licence” each has the same meaning as in Part 1 of this Act;
“national sound broadcasting licence” means a licence to provide a sound broadcasting service (within the meaning of Part 3 of this Act) which is a national service (within the meaning of that Part);
“public teletext licence” means a licence to provide the public teletext service (within the meaning of Part 3 of the Communications Act 2003);
“radio multiplex licence” means a licence under Part 2 of the Broadcasting Act 1996 to provide a radio multiplex service within the meaning of that Part; and
“television multiplex licence” means a licence under Part 1 of the Broadcasting Act 1996 to provide a multiplex service within the meaning of that Part.”
(4) In paragraph 4(2)(b) of that Part (bodies that are relevant bodies for the purposes of general disqualification on grounds of undue influence) for “as mentioned in paragraph (a)(i) or (ii) above” there shall be substituted—
“(i) by a person falling within paragraph 1(1)(c) to (g) above;
(ii) by a person falling within paragraph 3 above; or
(iii) by two or more persons taken together each of whom falls within sub-paragraph (i) or (ii) (whether or not they all fall within the same sub-paragraph).”
(5) The Secretary of State may by order make provision—
(a) for repealing paragraph 2 of Part 2 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act; or
(b) for making such other modifications of that paragraph and any enactment referring to it as he thinks fit.
(6) Before making an order under subsection (5) (other than one that is confined to giving effect to recommendations made by OFCOM in a report of a review under section 391), the Secretary of State must consult OFCOM.
(7) No order is to be made containing provision authorised by subsection (5) unless a draft of the order has been laid before Parliament and approved by a resolution of each House.
(1) In Part 2 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act (disqualification from holding licences), in paragraph 1 (which includes a disqualification for local authorities)—
(a) in sub-paragraph (1), for “sub-paragraph (2)” there shall be substituted “sub-paragraph (1A)”; and
(b) after that sub-paragraph there shall be inserted—
“(1A) Where a service is provided exclusively for the purposes of the carrying out of the functions of a local authority under section 142 of the Local Government Act 1972 (provision by local authorities of information relating to their activities), a person is disqualified by virtue of sub-paragraph (1) in relation to a licence to provide that service only if he would be so disqualified disregarding paragraph (c) of that sub-paragraph.”
(2) In section 142 of the Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) (provision by local authorities of information relating to their activities), after subsection (1A) there shall be inserted—
“(1AA) A local authority may—
(a) for the purpose of broadcasting or distributing information falling within subsection (1AB), provide an electronic communications network or electronic communications service, or
(b) arrange with the provider of such a network or service for the broadcasting or distribution of such information by means of the network or service.
(1AB) Information falls within this subsection, in relation to a local authority, if it is one or both of the following—
(a) information concerning the services within the area of the authority that are provided either by the authority themselves or by other authorities mentioned in subsection (1B) below;
(b) information relating to the functions of the authority.
(1AC) Nothing in subsection (1AA) entitles a local authority to do anything in contravention of a requirement or restriction imposed by or under—
(a) the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1949,
(b) the Broadcasting Act 1990,
(c) the Broadcasting Act 1996, or
(d) the Communications Act 2003,
and in that subsection “electronic communications network” and “electronic communications service” each has the same meaning as in the Communications Act 2003.”
(3) In section 2(1) of the Local Government Act 1986 (c. 10) (restriction on publication by a local authority of material designed to affect support for a political party), after “publish” there shall be inserted “, or arrange for the publication of,”.
(1) Parts 3 to 5 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act (restrictions on accumulations of interests and on licence holding by newspaper proprietors and public telecommunications providers) shall cease to have effect.
(2) In each of sections 5 and 88 of the 1990 Act and of sections 5 and 44 of the 1996 Act (under which the provisions of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act are given effect), for paragraph (b) of subsection (1) there shall be substituted—
“(b) that a person does not become the holder of a licence if requirements imposed by or under Schedule 14 to the Communications Act 2003 would be contravened were he to do so; and
(c) that those requirements are not contravened in the case of a person who already holds a licence.”
(3) Schedule 14 (which provides for the imposition of requirements which, in the case of Channel 3 services and certain radio services, replace those imposed by or under Parts 3 and 4 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act and requires approval for the holding of certain licences by religious bodies etc.) shall have effect.
(4) The Secretary of State must not by order under section 411 appoint a day falling before the commencement day for paragraph 11 of Schedule 14 as the day for the coming into force of the repeal by this Act of any of the provisions of Parts 3 and 4 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act so far as they relate to the holding of licences for the provision of any local services (within the meaning of Part 3 of that Act).
(5) The Secretary of State must not by order under section 411 appoint a day falling before the commencement day for paragraph 12 of Schedule 14 as the day for the coming into force of the repeal by this Act of any of the provisions of Parts 3 and 4 of Schedule 2 to the 1990 Act so far as they relate to the holding of local digital sound programme licences or the provision of local digital sound programme services.
(6) In this section “the commencement day”, in relation paragraph 11 or 12 of Schedule 14, means the day on which the first order to be made under that paragraph comes into force.
Communications Act 2003