PART 1Financial Guidance etc

Unsolicited direct marketing approaches

21Unsolicited direct marketing: pensions

1

The Secretary of State may make regulations prohibiting unsolicited direct marketing relating to pensions.

2

The regulations may—

a

make provision about when a communication is to be, or is not to be, treated as unsolicited;

b

make provision for exceptions to the prohibition;

c

confer functions on the Information Commissioner and on OFCOM (including conferring a discretion);

d

apply (with or without modifications) provisions of the data protection legislation or the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003 (S.I. 2003/2426) (including, in particular, provisions relating to enforcement).

3

The regulations may—

a

make different provision for different purposes;

b

make different provision for different areas;

c

make incidental, supplementary, consequential, transitional or saving provision.

4

Regulations under this section are to be made by statutory instrument.

5

A statutory instrument containing regulations under this section may not be made unless a draft of the instrument has been laid before, and approved by a resolution of, each House of Parliament.

6

If before the end of June in any year the Secretary of State has not made regulations under this section (whether or not in that year), the Secretary of State must—

a

publish a statement, by the end of July in that year, explaining why regulations have not been made and setting a timetable for making the regulations, and

b

lay the statement before each House of Parliament.

7

In this section, “OFCOM” means the Office of Communications established by section 1 of the Office of Communications Act 2002.