Part I The Provision of Railway Services

Access agreements

22 Amendment of access agreements.

(1)

Any amendment, or purported amendment, of an access agreement shall be void unless the amendment has been approved by F1the Office of Rail and Road F2or is made pursuant to directions under section 22A or 22C below or Schedule 4A to this Act.

(2)

F1The Office of Rail and Road may, for the purposes of subsection (1) above, give the parties to any particular access agreement F3its general approval to the making to that access agreement of amendments of a description specified in the approval; and any approval so given shall not be revoked.

(3)

F1The Office of Rail and Road may, for the purposes of subsection (1) above, give F3its general approval to the making to access agreements, or to access agreements of a particular class or description, of amendments of a description specified in the approval.

(4)

Where F1the Office of Rail and Road gives or revokes a general approval under subsection (3) above, F4it shall publish the approval or revocation (as the case may be) in such manner as F4it considers appropriate.

(5)

The revocation of a general approval given under subsection (3) above shall not affect the continuing validity of any amendment made in accordance with, and before the revocation of, that approval.

F5(6)

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F6(6A)

Neither F7the CMA nor F1the Office of Rail and Road may exercise, in respect of an access agreement, the powers given by section 32 (enforcement directions) or section 35(2) (interim directions) of the Competition Act 1998.

F6(6B)

Subsection (6A) does not apply to the exercise of the powers given by section 35(2) in respect of conduct—

(a)

which is connected with an access agreement; and

(b)

in respect of which section 35(1)(b) of that Act applies.