- Latest available (Revised)
- Point in Time (15/09/2011)
- Original (As enacted)
Version Superseded: 01/10/2011
Point in time view as at 15/09/2011.
There are currently no known outstanding effects for the Postal Services Act 2000, Cross Heading: Licences.
Revised legislation carried on this site may not be fully up to date. At the current time any known changes or effects made by subsequent legislation have been applied to the text of the legislation you are viewing by the editorial team. Please see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ for details regarding the timescales for which new effects are identified and recorded on this site.
(1)The Commission may, on an application by a person under section 12, grant a licence to that person authorising him to do anything which—
(a)would otherwise contravene section 6(1), and
(b)is specified in the licence or determined by or under it.
(2)A licence shall not be valid unless it is in writing.
(3)A licence shall not be transferred.
(4)A licence shall, unless it previously ceases to have effect in accordance with its provisions, continue in force for the period specified in it or determined by or under it.
(1)An application for a licence shall be made in writing to the Commission in accordance with such requirements as the Commission may specify.
(2)The Commission may, in particular, require the application to be accompanied by such reasonable application fee as it may determine.
(3)Before granting a licence the Commission shall—
(a)publish a notice in such manner as the Commission considers appropriate for bringing it to the attention of persons likely to be affected by the grant,
(b)serve a copy of the notice on the Council, and
(c)consider any representations made in accordance with the notice and not withdrawn.
(4)The notice shall—
(a)state that the Commission proposes to grant the licence and the reasons for so proposing, and
(b)state the period (not less than 28 days starting with the date of publication of the notice) within which representations may be made regarding the proposed licence.
(5)As soon as practicable after granting a licence the Commission shall send a copy of it to the Secretary of State and the Council.
Commencement Information
I1S. 12 wholly in force; s. 12 not in force at Royal Assent see s. 130; s. 12(1)(2)(3)(a)(c)(4) in force at 6.11.2000 and s. 12 in force insofar as not already in force at 1.1.2001 by S.I. 2000/2957, art. 2(1)(2), Sch. 1, Sch. 2 (with transitional provisions in arts. 3-8)
Where the Commission determines not to grant a licence (in whole or in part), it shall, as soon as practicable after making that determination, notify the applicant and give him a written statement of its reasons for the determination.]
Textual Amendments
F1S. 12A inserted (1.1.2003) by S.I. 2002/3050, reg. 5
(1)For the purposes of this section—
“non-reservable service” means a service of conveying letters from one place to another, where each letter has either or both of the following characteristics, namely—
“reservable service” means a service of conveying letters from one place to another, where each letter—
and subsection (6) of section 6 applies as it applies for the purposes of that section.
(2)Where an application for a licence seeks authority for the provision of a reservable service which no person (other than a universal service provider) is authorised by a licence to provide in the manner sought in the application—
(a)in a case where the application seeks authority for the provision of that service alone, the Commission shall grant a licence if, and only if, it is satisfied that the requirements of subsections (5) and (6) will be met in relation to the licence (if and when it is granted), and
(b)in any other case, the Commission shall grant a licence so far as the application relates to the provision of that service if, and only if, it is satisfied that (if and when the licence is granted) those requirements will be met in relation to so much of the licence as relates to the provision of that service.
(3)Where an application for a licence seeks authority for the provision of a reservable service which a person (other than a universal service provider) is authorised by a licence to provide in the manner sought in the application—
(a)in a case where the application seeks authority for the provision of that service alone, the Commission shall grant a licence if, and only if, it is satisfied that the requirements of subsection (5) will be met in relation to the licence (if and when it is granted), and
(b)in any other case, the Commission shall grant a licence so far as the application relates to the provision of that service if, and only if, it is satisfied that (if and when the licence is granted) those requirements will be met in relation to so much of the licence as relates to the provision of that service.
(4)Where an application for a licence seeks authority for the provision of a non-reservable service, the Commission—
(a)in a case where the application seeks authority for the provision of that service alone, shall grant a licence if, and only if, it is satisfied that the requirements of subsection (5) will be met in relation to the licence (if and when it is granted), and
(b)in any other case, shall grant a licence so far as the application relates to the provision of that service if, and only if, it is satisfied that (if and when the licence is granted) those requirements will be met in relation to so much of the licence as relates to the provision of that service.
(5)The requirements of this subsection are—
(a)that the licence includes provisions designed to safeguard the provision of a universal postal service,
(b)that the licence includes provisions designed to ensure that the holder complies with such requirements as the Commission considers necessary for the purpose of—
(i)safeguarding confidentiality in connection with the sending, conveyance and delivery of letters;
(ii)safeguarding security where dangerous goods are transported;
(iii)safeguarding the confidentiality of information conveyed;
(iv)preserving privacy;
(v)protecting the environment;
(vi)promoting such policies as the Secretary of State may from time to time have in respect of regional planning and development, and
(c)that the holder of the licence is in a position to comply with any requirement imposed on him by provision made under paragraph (a) or (b).
(6)The requirement of this subsection is that—
(a)the grant of the licence, and
(b)the grant to the holder or any other person of any licence of a similar nature, does not endanger the ability of a universal service provider to provide basic postal services.
(7)In subsection (6) “basic postal services”, in relation to a universal service provider, means such postal services as he is required to provide in the discharge of any duty to provide a universal postal service, or part of such a service,—
(a)imposed under section 3(2) as a condition of his licence,
(b)included in his licence as a condition by virtue of section 13(1), or
(c)imposed on him by an order under section 102(2).]
Textual Amendments
F2S. 12B inserted (1.1.2003) by S.I. 2002/3050, reg. 6
F3Words in s. 12B substituted (1.1.2006) by Postal Services (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002/3050), regs. 1(5), 8(a)
F4Words in s. 12B substituted (1.1.2006) by Postal Services (EC Directive) Regulations 2002 (S.I. 2002/3050), regs. 1(5), 8(b)
(1)A licence may include such provisions as the Commission considers appropriate; and a provision need not relate to anything authorised by the licence.
(2)The provisions of a licence may, in particular, require a payment to the Commission on the grant of the licence, or payments while the licence is in force, or both, of such amount or amounts as may be specified in the licence or determined by or under it.
(3)Such provisions of a licence as the Commission considers appropriate may be expressed as conditions.
(4)The Commission shall consult any person who is to be granted a licence about any conditions that the Commission proposes to include in the licence (other than any condition which the Commission is required to include in the licence by virtue of this Act).
(5)References in this Act to a condition of a licence are to a provision of a licence which is expressed as a condition.
(6)Subject to subsection (7) no action shall lie or, in Scotland, be competent in respect of a contravention by a licence holder of a condition of his licence.
(7)Subsection (6) does not affect—
(a)a right of action in respect of an act or omission which takes place in the course of the provision of any postal services or the doing of anything else to which the condition relates,
(b)the power to make an order under section 22 or 23, confirm an order made under section 23 or impose a penalty under section 30,
(c)the duty to comply with any such order or pay any such penalty and a power to bring proceedings in respect of such a duty.
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download.
Would you like to continue?
The Whole Act you have selected contains over 200 provisions and might take some time to download. You may also experience some issues with your browser, such as an alert box that a script is taking a long time to run.
Would you like to continue?
Latest Available (revised):The latest available updated version of the legislation incorporating changes made by subsequent legislation and applied by our editorial team. Changes we have not yet applied to the text, can be found in the ‘Changes to Legislation’ area.
Original (As Enacted or Made): The original version of the legislation as it stood when it was enacted or made. No changes have been applied to the text.
Point in Time: This becomes available after navigating to view revised legislation as it stood at a certain point in time via Advanced Features > Show Timeline of Changes or via a point in time advanced search.
Geographical Extent: Indicates the geographical area that this provision applies to. For further information see ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.
Show Timeline of Changes: See how this legislation has or could change over time. Turning this feature on will show extra navigation options to go to these specific points in time. Return to the latest available version by using the controls above in the What Version box.
Text created by the government department responsible for the subject matter of the Act to explain what the Act sets out to achieve and to make the Act accessible to readers who are not legally qualified. Explanatory Notes were introduced in 1999 and accompany all Public Acts except Appropriation, Consolidated Fund, Finance and Consolidation Acts.
Access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item from this tab. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
This timeline shows the different points in time where a change occurred. The dates will coincide with the earliest date on which the change (e.g an insertion, a repeal or a substitution) that was applied came into force. The first date in the timeline will usually be the earliest date when the provision came into force. In some cases the first date is 01/02/1991 (or for Northern Ireland legislation 01/01/2006). This date is our basedate. No versions before this date are available. For further information see the Editorial Practice Guide and Glossary under Help.
Use this menu to access essential accompanying documents and information for this legislation item. Dependent on the legislation item being viewed this may include:
Click 'View More' or select 'More Resources' tab for additional information including: