(1)Before making modifications of a licence under section 139(1) the Secretary of State must consult—
(a)the holder of any licence being modified,
(b)the Authority, and
(c)such other persons as the Secretary of State considers it appropriate to consult.
(2)Subsection (1) may be satisfied by consultation before, as well as by consultation after, the passing of this Act.
(3)Before making modifications under section 139(1) the Secretary of State must lay a draft of the modifications before Parliament.
(4)If, within the 40-day period, either House of Parliament resolves not to approve the draft, the Secretary of State may not take any further steps in relation to the proposed modifications.
(5)If no such resolution is made within that period, the Secretary of State may make the modifications in the form of the draft.
(6)Subsection (4) does not prevent a new draft of proposed modifications being laid before Parliament.
(7)In this section “40-day period”, in relation to a draft of proposed modifications, means the period of 40 days beginning with the day on which the draft is laid before Parliament (or, if it is not laid before each House of Parliament on the same day, the later of the 2 days on which it is laid).
(8)For the purposes of calculating the 40-day period, no account is to be taken of any period during which Parliament is dissolved or prorogued or during which both Houses are adjourned for more than 4 days.
(9)The Secretary of State must publish details of any modifications made under section 139(1) as soon as reasonably practicable after they are made.
(10)Where the Secretary of State makes a modification of the standard conditions of a licence of any type, the Authority must—
(a)make the same modification of those standard conditions for the purposes of their incorporation in licences of that type granted after that time, and
(b)publish the modification.
(11)A modification of part of a standard condition of a particular licence does not prevent any other part of the condition from continuing to be regarded as a standard condition for the purposes of Part 1 of the Gas Act 1986 or Part 1 of EA 1989.
(12)The power in section 139(1) may not be exercised after 31 December 2018.