Railways Act 1993 (c. 43)

(The document as of February, 2008)

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(6) For the purposes of this Part--

(a) "protected railway company" means a company which is both a private sector operator and the holder of--

(i) a passenger licence; or

(ii) a network licence, a station licence or a light maintenance depot licence; and

(b) the "relevant activities", in relation to a protected railway company, are--

(i) in the case of a company which is the holder of a passenger licence, the carriage of passengers by railway; or

(ii) in the case of a company which is the holder of a network licence, a station licence or a light maintenance depot licence, the management of a network, a station or a light maintenance depot, according to the description of licence in question.

(7) In this section--

"business" and "property" have the same meaning as they have in the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986;
"the court", in the case of any protected railway company, means the court having jurisdiction to wind up the company;
"the railway administration order provisions of this Act" means this section, sections 60 to 65 below and Schedules 6 and 7 to this Act.

60 Railway administration orders made on special petitions

(1) If, on an application made to the court by petition presented--

(a) by the Secretary of State, or

(b) if the petition relates to a protected railway company which is the holder of a passenger licence, by the Franchising Director with the consent of the Secretary of State,

the court is satisfied that either or both of the grounds specified in subsection (2) below is satisfied in relation to that protected railway company, the court may make a railway administration order in relation to that company.

(2) The grounds mentioned in subsection (1) above are, in relation to any company,--

(a) that the company is or is likely to be unable to pay its debts;

(b) that, in a case in which the Secretary of State has certified that it would be appropriate for him to petition for the winding up of the company under section 124A of the 1986 Act (petition by the Secretary of State following inspectors' report etc), it would be just and equitable, as mentioned in that section, for the company to be wound up.

(3) Notice of any petition under this section for a railway administration order shall be given forthwith to such persons and in such manner as may be prescribed by rules made under section 411 of the 1986 Act; and no such petition shall be withdrawn except with the leave of the court.

(4) Subsections (4) and (5) of section 9 of the 1986 Act (powers on application for administration order) shall apply on the hearing of the petition for a railway administration order in relation to any company as they apply on the hearing of a petition for an administration order.

(5) Subsections (1), (2), (4) and (5) of section 10 of the 1986 Act (effect of petition) shall apply in the case of a petition for a railway administration order in relation to any company as if--

(a) the reference in subsection (1) to an administration order were a reference to a railway administration order;

(b) paragraph (b) of that subsection did require the leave of the court for the taking of any of the steps mentioned in paragraphs (b) and (c) of subsection (2) (appointment of, and exercise of functions by, administrative receiver); and

(c) the reference in paragraph (c) of subsection (1) to proceedings included a reference to any proceedings under or for the purposes of section 55 above.

(6) For the purposes of this section a company is unable to pay its debts if--

(a) it is a company which is deemed to be so unable under section 123 of the 1986 Act (definition of inability to pay debts); or

(b) it is an unregistered company, within the meaning of Part V of the 1986 Act, which is deemed, by virtue of any of sections 222 to 224 of that Act, to be so unable for the purposes of section 221 of that Act (winding up of unregistered companies).

(7) In this section--

"the 1986 Act" means the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986;
"the court" has the same meaning as in section 59 above.

61 Restriction on making winding-up order in respect of protected railway company

(1) Where a petition for the winding up of a protected railway company is presented by a person other than the Secretary of State, the court shall not make a winding-up order in relation to that company on that petition unless--

(a) notice of the petition has been served on--

(i) the Secretary of State; and

(ii) the Franchising Director, if the protected railway company is the holder of a passenger licence; and

(b) a period of at least fourteen days has elapsed since the service of that notice.

(2) Where a petition for the winding up of a protected railway company has been presented--

(a) the Secretary of State, or

(b) if the company is the holder of a passenger licence, the Franchising Director with the consent of the Secretary of State,

may, at any time before a winding-up order is made on the petition, make an application to the court for a railway administration order in relation to that company; and where such an application is made the court may, if it is satisfied as mentioned in section 60(1) above, make a railway administration order instead of a winding-up order.

(3) Where, on a petition for the winding up of a protected railway company, the court makes, or proposes to make, a railway administration order by virtue of subsection (2) above, subsections (4) and (5) of section 9 of the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986 (powers on application for administration order) shall apply on the hearing of that petition as they apply on the hearing of a petition for an administration order.

(4) In this section "the court" has the same meaning as in section 59 above.

62 Restrictions on voluntary winding up and insolvency proceedings in the case of protected railway companies

(1) No resolution for voluntary winding up shall be passed by a protected railway company without leave of the court granted on an application made for the purpose by the company.

(2) No such leave shall be granted unless--

(a) notice of the application has been served on--

(i) the Secretary of State; and

(ii) the Franchising Director, if the protected railway company is the holder of a passenger licence; and

(b) a period of at least fourteen days has elapsed since the service of that notice.

(3) Where an application for leave under subsection (1) above has been made by a protected railway company--

(a) the Secretary of State, or

(b) if the company is the holder of a passenger licence, the Franchising Director with the consent of the Secretary of State,

may, at any time before leave has been granted under subsection (1) above, make an application to the court for a railway administration order in relation to that company; and where such an application is made the court may, if it is satisfied as mentioned in section 60(1) above, make a railway administration order instead of granting leave under subsection (1) above.

(4) Where, on an application for leave under subsection (1) above, the court makes, or proposes to make, a railway administration order by virtue of subsection (3) above, subsections (4) and (5) of section 9 of the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986 (powers on application for administration order) shall apply on the hearing of that application as they apply on the hearing of a petition for an administration order.

(5) No administration order under Part II of the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986 shall be made in relation to a protected railway company unless--

(a) notice of the application for the order has been served on--

(i) the Secretary of State; and

(ii) the Franchising Director, if the protected railway company is the holder of a passenger licence; and

(b) a period of at least fourteen days has elapsed since the service of that notice.

(6) Where an application for an administration order under Part II of the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986 has been made in the case of a protected railway company--

(a) the Secretary of State, or

(b) if the company is the holder of a passenger licence, the Franchising Director with the consent of the Secretary of State,

may, at any time before such an order has been made on that application, make an application to the court for a railway administration order in relation to that company; and where such an application is made the court may, if it is satisfied as mentioned in section 60(1) above, make a railway administration order instead of an administration order under Part II of the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986.

(7) No step shall be taken by any person to enforce any security over a protected railway company's property, except where that person has served fourteen days' notice of his intention to take that step on--

(a) the Secretary of State; and

(b) the Franchising Director, if the company is the holder of a passenger licence.

(8) In this section--

"the court" has the same meaning as in section 59 above;
"resolution for voluntary winding up" has the same meaning as in the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986;
"security" and "property" have the same meaning as in the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986.

63 Government financial assistance where railway administration orders made

(1) Where a railway administration order is for the time being in force in relation to a company, the Secretary of State may, with the consent of the Treasury--

(a) make to the company grants or loans of such sums as appear to him to be appropriate for the purpose of facilitating the achievement of the purposes of the order;

(b) agree to indemnify the person appointed to achieve the purposes of the order in respect of liabilities incurred and loss or damage sustained by that person in connection with the carrying out of his functions under the order.

(2) The Secretary of State may, with the consent of the Treasury, guarantee, in such manner and on such conditions as he may think fit, the repayment of the principal of, the payment of interest on and the discharge of any other financial obligation in connection with any sum which is borrowed from any person by a company in relation to which a railway administration order is in force at the time when the guarantee is given.

(3) Without prejudice to any provision applied in relation to the company by Schedule 6 to this Act--

(a) the terms and conditions on which a grant is made to any company under this section may require the whole or a part of the grant to be repaid to the Secretary of State if there is a contravention of the other terms and conditions on which the grant is made; and

(b) any loans which the Secretary of State makes to a company under this section shall be repaid to him at such times and by such methods, and interest on the loans shall be paid to him at such rates and at such times, as he may, with the consent of the Treasury, from time to time direct.

(4) Any grant or loan made under this section and any sums required to be paid by the Secretary of State in respect of an indemnity given under this section shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.

(5) Any sums received under subsection (3) above by the Secretary of State shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.

64 Guarantees under section 63

(1) This section applies in relation to any guarantee given by the Secretary of State under section 63 above.

(2) Immediately after a guarantee to which this section applies is given, the Secretary of State shall lay a statement of the guarantee before each House of Parliament.

(3) Where any sum is paid out for fulfilling a guarantee to which this section applies, the Secretary of State shall, as soon as possible after the end of each financial year (beginning with that in which the sum is paid out and ending with that in which all liability in respect of the principal of the sum and in respect of the interest thereon is finally discharged), lay before each House of Parliament a statement relating to that sum.

(4) Any sums required by the Secretary of State for fulfilling a guarantee to which this section applies shall be paid out of money provided by Parliament.

(5) Without prejudice to any provision applied in relation to the relevant company by Schedule 6 to this Act, if any sums are paid out in fulfilment of a guarantee to which this section applies, the relevant company shall make to the Secretary of State, at such times and in such manner as the Secretary of State may from time to time direct--

(a) payments of such amounts as the Secretary of State may so direct in or towards repayment of the sums so paid out; and

(b) payments of interest, at such rate as the Secretary of State may so direct, on what is outstanding for the time being in respect of sums so paid out;

and the consent of the Treasury shall be required for the giving of a direction under this subsection.

(6) Any sums received by the Secretary of State under subsection (5) above shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.

(7) In subsection (5) above "the relevant company" in relation to a guarantee, means the company which borrowed the sums in respect of which the guarantee was given.

65 Meaning of "company" and application of provisions to unregistered, foreign and other companies

(1) In the railway administration order provisions of this Act--

"company" means--
(a)
any company formed and registered under the [1985 c. 6.] Companies Act 1985 or any existing company within the meaning given in section 735(1) of that Act; and
(b)
any unregistered company; and
"unregistered company" has the meaning given in Part V of the 1986 Act.

(2) In the application of section 59(1) above in a case where the protected railway company there mentioned is a foreign company, the reference to the affairs, business and property of the company shall be taken as a reference to the affairs and business of the company, so far as carried on in Great Britain, and the property of the company within Great Britain.

(3) In the application of section 9(5) of the 1986 Act by virtue of subsection (4) of section 60 above or subsection (3) of section 61 above where the petition mentioned in the subsection in question relates to a company which is a foreign company, the reference to restricting the exercise of any powers of the directors or of the company shall be taken as a reference to restricting--

(a) the exercise within Great Britain of the powers of the directors or of the company; or

(b) any exercise of those powers so far as relating to the affairs, business or property of the company in Great Britain.

(4) In the application of provisions in section 10 of the 1986 Act by virtue of subsection (5) of section 60 above where the company mentioned in that subsection is a foreign company--

(a) paragraph (a) of subsection (1) shall be omitted;

(b) any reference in paragraph (b) or (c) of that subsection to property or goods shall be taken as a reference to property or (as the case may be) goods for the time being situated within Great Britain;

(i) the reference to the commencement or continuation of proceedings shall be taken as a reference to the commencement or continuation of proceedings in Great Britain; and

(ii) the reference to the levying of distress against the company shall be taken as a reference to the levying of distress against the foreign company to the extent of its property in England and Wales; and

(d) any reference in subsection (2) to an administrative receiver shall be taken to include a reference to any person performing, in relation to the foreign company, functions equivalent to those of an administrative receiver, within the meaning of section 251 of the 1986 Act.

(5) Subsections (1) to (4) of section 62 above shall not have effect in relation to a protected railway company which is a foreign company.

(6) In the application of subsection (7) of that section where the protected railway company there mentioned is a foreign company, the reference to the company's property shall be taken as a reference to such of its property as is for the time being situated in Great Britain.

(7) In this section--

"the 1986 Act" means the [1986 c. 45.] Insolvency Act 1986;
"foreign company" means a company incorporated outside Great Britain;
"the railway administration order provisions of this Act" means sections 59 to 64 above, this section and Schedules 6 and 7 to this Act.

Consumer protection

66 Amendments of the Fair Trading Act 1973

(1) In section 50 of the 1973 Act, at the beginning of subsection (2) (which prohibits the making of a monopoly reference by the Director General of Fair Trading in connection with monopoly situations arising in relation to the supply of certain goods and services, including the supply of railway services) there shall be inserted the words "Subject to subsection (2A) of this section" and after that subsection there shall be inserted--

" (2A) Subsection (2) of this section shall not preclude the making of a monopoly reference by the Director with respect to the existence or possible existence of a monopoly situation in relation to the supply of such services as are specified in paragraph 5 of Schedule 5 to this Act in Great Britain, except in relation to the supply of any such services by--

(a) a body corporate to which section 16 of this Act applies;

(b) a subsidiary, within the meaning of section 736 of the [1985 c. 6.] Companies Act 1985, of any such body corporate; or

(2) In section 51 of that Act, in subsection (3) (which specifies those Ministers the consent of one or more of whom is required before the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry may make a monopoly reference under that section in connection with monopoly situations arising in relation to the supply of certain goods and services, including the supply of railway services) after the words "the Secretary of State for the Environment," there shall be inserted the words "the Secretary of State for Transport,".

(3) For the purposes of sections 64 to 77 of that Act (merger references), where a person enters into a franchise agreement as a franchisee, there shall be taken to be brought under his control an enterprise, within the meaning of section 63(2) of that Act, engaged in the supply of the railway services to which the agreement relates.

(4) In section 137 of the 1973 Act, in subsection (3) (meaning of the expression "the supply of services"), after paragraph (f) there shall be inserted the words " and

(g) includes the supply of network services and station services, within the meaning of Part I of the Railways Act 1993; " .

(5) In Schedule 5 to the 1973 Act (goods and services in respect of which the making of a monopoly reference is prohibited or made subject to special restrictions) for paragraph 5 (which relates to the carriage of goods or passengers by railway) there shall be substituted--

" 5 Services for the carriage of passengers, or of goods, by railway, network services and station services, within the meaning of Part I of the Railways Act 1993, but excluding the carriage of passengers or goods on shuttle services (within the meaning of the [1987 c. 53.] Channel Tunnel Act 1987). "

(6) Expressions used in this section and in the 1973 or 1980 Act have the same meaning in this section as they have in that Act.

67 Respective functions of the Regulator and the Director General of Fair Trading, and functions of the Monopolies Commission

(1) If and to the extent that he is requested by the Director General of Fair Trading (in this Part referred to as "the Director") to do so, it shall be the duty of the Regulator to exercise the functions of the Director under Part III of the 1973 Act so far as relating to courses of conduct which are or may be detrimental to the interests of consumers of railway services, whether those interests are economic or interests in respect of health, safety or other matters; and references in that Part to the Director shall be construed accordingly.

(2) There are hereby transferred to the Regulator (so as to be exercisable concurrently with the Director)--

(a) the functions of the Director under sections 44 and 45 of the 1973 Act, and

(b) the functions of the Director under sections 50, 52, 53, 86 and 88 of that Act,

so far as relating to monopoly situations which exist or may exist in relation to the supply of railway services; and references in Part IV and sections 86, 88 and 133 of that Act to the Director shall be construed accordingly.

(3) There are hereby transferred to the Regulator (so as to be exercisable concurrently with the Director) the functions of the Director under sections 2 to 10 and 16 of the 1980 Act so far as relating to courses of conduct which have or are intended to have or are likely to have the effect of restricting, distorting, or preventing competition in connection with the supply of railway services; and references in those sections and in section 19 of that Act to the Director shall be construed accordingly.

(4) Before either relevant authority (that is to say, the Regulator or the Director) first exercises in relation to any matter functions transferred by any of the following provisions, namely--

(a) paragraph (a) of subsection (2) above,

(b) paragraph (b) of that subsection, and

he shall consult the other relevant authority; and neither relevant authority shall exercise in relation to any matter functions transferred by any of those provisions if functions transferred by that provision have been exercised in relation to that matter by the other relevant authority.

(5) It shall be the duty of the Regulator, for the purpose of assisting the Monopolies Commission in carrying out an investigation on a reference falling within subsection (6) below, to give to the Commission--

(a) any information which is in his possession and which relates to matters falling within the scope of the investigation and--

(i) is requested by the Commission for that purpose; or

(ii) is information which in his opinion it would be appropriate for that purpose to give to the Commission without any such request; and

(b) any other assistance which the Commission may require and which it is within his power to give, in relation to any such matters;

and the Commission shall, for the purposes of carrying out any such investigation, take into account any information given to them for that purpose under this subsection.

(6) The references which fall within this subsection are--

(a) any reference made to the Monopolies Commission by the Regulator by virtue of subsection (2) or (3) above; and

(b) any reference made to the Commission by the Secretary of State under section 11 of the 1980 Act, if the person who is the subject of the reference is--

(i) the Board or a wholly owned subsidiary of the Board, or

(ii) a publicly owned railway company which supplies network services or station services.

(7) A copy of any report of the Monopolies Commission on a monopoly reference which relates to the supply of railway services may be transmitted by the Commission to the Regulator, notwithstanding that the reference was made by a person other than the Regulator or that it could not have been made by him.

(8) If any question arises as to whether subsection (2) or (3) above applies to any particular case, that question shall be referred to and determined by the Secretary of State; and no objection shall be taken to anything done under--

(a) Part IV or section 86 or 88 of the 1973 Act, or

(b) sections 2 to 10 of the 1980 Act,

by or in relation to the Regulator on the ground that it should have been done by or in relation to the Director.

(9) Section 93B of the 1973 Act (offences of supplying false or misleading information to the Secretary of State, the Director General of Fair Trading or the Monopolies Commission in connection with their functions under Parts IV, V, VI or VIII of the 1973 Act or under the 1980 Act) shall have effect, so far as relating to functions exercisable by the Regulator by virtue of subsection (2) or (3) above, as if the reference in subsection (1)(a) of that section to the Director included a reference to the Regulator.

(10) Expressions used in this section and in the 1973 or 1980 Act have the same meaning in this section as they have in that Act.

Other functions of the Regulator

68 Investigatory functions

(1) Subject to subsection (2) below, it shall be the duty of the Regulator to investigate any alleged or apprehended contravention of--

(a) a condition of a licence, or

(b) a condition of a closure consent,

if the alleged or apprehended contravention is the subject of a representation (other than one appearing to him to be frivolous or vexatious) made to him by or on behalf of a person who appears to the Regulator to have an interest in the matter.

(2) The Regulator may, if he thinks fit, require a consultative committee to investigate and report to him on any matter falling within subsection (1) above which relates to--

(a) the provision of services for the carriage of passengers by railway, or

(b) the provision of station services,

and which it would otherwise have been his duty to investigate.

69 General functions

(1) It shall be the duty of the Regulator, so far as it appears to him practicable from time to time to do so--

(a) to keep under review the provision, both in Great Britain and elsewhere, of railway services; and

(b) to collect information with respect to the provision of those services, with a view to facilitating the exercise of his functions under this Part.

(2) The Secretary of State may give general directions indicating--

(a) considerations to which the Regulator should have particular regard in determining the order of priority in which matters are to be brought under review in performing his duty under subsection (1)(a) or (b) above; and

(b) considerations to which, in cases where it appears to the Regulator that any of his functions under this Part are exercisable, he should have particular regard in determining whether to exercise those functions.

(3) It shall be the duty of the Regulator, where either he considers it expedient or he is requested by the Secretary of State or the Director to do so, to give information, advice and assistance to the Secretary of State or the Director with respect to any matter in respect of which any function of the Regulator under this Part is exercisable.

(4) If the Regulator--

(a) is requested to do so by the Franchising Director, or

(b) considers it appropriate to do so,

he may provide the Franchising Director with any information which he has which relates to the functions of the Franchising Director.

70 Code of practice for protection of interests of rail users who are disabled

(1) The Regulator shall--

(a) prepare and from time to time revise, and

(b) publish and otherwise encourage the adoption and implementation of,

a code of practice for protecting the interests of users of railway passenger services or station services who are disabled.

(2) In preparing or revising the code of practice, the Regulator shall consult the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee, established under section 125 of the [1985 c. 67.] Transport Act 1985.

71 Publication of information and advice

(1) The Regulator may arrange for the publication, in such form and in such manner as he considers appropriate, of such information and advice as it may appear to him expedient to give to users or potential users of railway services in Great Britain.

(2) In arranging for the publication of any such information or advice the Regulator shall have regard to the need for excluding, so far as that is practicable--

(a) any matter which relates to the affairs of an individual, where publication of that matter would or might, in the opinion of the Regulator, seriously and prejudicially affect the interests of that individual; and

(b) any matter which relates specifically to the affairs of a particular body of persons, whether corporate or unincorporate, where publication of that matter would or might, in the opinion of the Regulator, seriously and prejudicially affect the interests of that body.

(3) The Director shall consult the Regulator before publishing under section 124 of the 1973 Act any information or advice which may be published by the Regulator under this section.

Registers and reports of the Regulator and the Franchising Director

72 Keeping of register by the Regulator

(1) The Regulator shall, at such premises and in such form as he may determine, maintain a register for the purposes of this Part.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) and to any direction given under subsection (4) below, the Regulator shall cause to be entered in the register--

(a) in relation to licences, the provisions of--

(i) every licence and every licence exemption;

(ii) every assignment of a licence of which notice is received by the Regulator;

(iii) every modification or revocation of a licence;

(iv) every revocation of a licence exemption;

(v) every requirement imposed, or consent or approval given, by the Regulator under a licence;

(vi) every requirement imposed, or consent or approval given, under a licence by any person (other than the Regulator) who is a qualified person, within the meaning of section 9(3) above, for the purpose in question, being a requirement, consent or approval whose provisions have been notified to the Regulator pursuant to a condition of the licence;

(vii) every final or provisional order which relates to a licence, every revocation of such an order and every notice given by the Regulator under section 55(6) above that he is satisfied that he does not need to make such an order;

and notice of every surrender of a licence;

(b) in relation to access agreements, access contracts and installation access contracts, the provisions of--

(i) every facility exemption granted under section 20(3) above;

(ii) every direction to enter into an access contract or an installation access contract;

(iii) every access agreement;

(iv) every amendment (however described) of an access agreement;

(v) every general approval given under section 22(3) above which is for the time being in force;

(vi) every document issued or made by the Regulator under an access agreement;

(i) every closure consent and every closure condition; and

(ii) every final or provisional order made by the Regulator which relates to any closure or proposed closure or to any closure consent or closure condition, every revocation of such an order and every notice given by the Regulator under section 55(6) above that he is satisfied that he does not need to make such an order;

(d) in relation to experimental passenger services, within the meaning of section 48 above, the provisions of--

(i) every notice under section 48(7) above designating a service as experimental;

(ii) every notice under section 48(2) or (3) above of a proposal to discontinue a service designated as experimental;

(iii) every final or provisional order made by the Regulator which relates to the provision or discontinuance of any such service, every revocation of such an order and every notice given by the Regulator under section 55(6) above that he is satisfied that he does not need to make such an order; and

(e) the provisions of every railway administration order and of every discharge of such an order.

(3) In entering any provision in the register, the Regulator shall have regard to the need for excluding, so far as that is practicable, the matters specified in section 71(2)(a) and (b) above.

(4) If it appears to the Secretary of State that the entry of any provision in the register would be against the public interest or the commercial interests of any person, he may direct the Regulator not to enter that provision in the register.

(5) Where an access agreement is entered into or amended, the facility owner or installation owner concerned shall send a copy of the access agreement or amendment to the Regulator not later than 14 days after the date on which the access agreement is entered into or the amendment is made, as the case may be.

(6) A person who fails to comply with subsection (5) above is guilty of an offence and shall be liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale.

(7) The contents of the register shall be available for inspection by the public during such hours and subject to the payment of such fee as may be specified in an order made by the Secretary of State.

(8) Any person may, on the payment of such fee as may be specified in an order so made, require the Regulator to supply him with a copy of, or extract from, any part of the register, being a copy or extract which is certified by the Regulator to be a true copy or extract.

(9) The contents of the register shall be available for inspection at any time by the Franchising Director, without payment of any fee; and the Franchising Director may require the Regulator, without payment of any fee, to supply him with a copy of, or extract from, any part of the register, being a copy or extract which is certified by the Regulator to be a true copy or extract.

(10) Any reference in this section to "assignment" shall be construed in Scotland as a reference to assignation.

(11) Any sums received by the Regulator under this section shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.

73 Keeping of register by the Franchising Director

(1) The Franchising Director shall, at such premises and in such form as he may determine, maintain a register for the purposes of this Part.

(2) Subject to subsection (3) and to any direction given under subsection (4) below, the Franchising Director shall cause to be entered in the register the provisions of--

(a) every franchise exemption;

(b) every franchise agreement;

(d) every amendment (however described) of a franchise agreement;

(e) every final or provisional order which relates to a franchise agreement, every revocation of such an order and every notice given by the Franchising Director under section 55(6) above that he is satisfied that he does not need to make such an order;

and, without prejudice to the generality of paragraph (d) above, "amendment" in that paragraph includes any variation of the property, rights and liabilities which from time to time constitute the franchise assets in relation to the franchise agreement in question, whether the variation is effected in accordance with the terms of, or by an amendment made to, the franchise agreement.

(3) In entering any provision in the register, the Franchising Director shall have regard to the need for excluding, so far as that is practicable, the matters specified in paragraphs (a) and (b) of section 71(2) above, for this purpose taking references in those paragraphs to the Regulator as references to the Franchising Director.

(4) If it appears to the Secretary of State that the entry of any provision in the register would be against the public interest or the commercial interests of any person, he may direct the Franchising Director not to enter that provision in the register.

(5) The contents of the register shall be available for inspection by the public during such hours and subject to the payment of such fee as may be specified in an order made by the Secretary of State.

(6) Any person may, on the payment of such fee as may be specified in an order so made, require the Franchising Director to supply him with a copy of, or extract from, any part of the register, being a copy or extract which is certified by the Franchising Director to be a true copy or extract.

(7) The contents of the register shall be available for inspection at any time by the Regulator, without payment of any fee; and the Regulator may require the Franchising Director, without payment of any fee, to supply him with a copy of, or extract from, any part of the register, being a copy or extract which is certified by the Franchising Director to be a true copy or extract.

(8) Any sums received by the Franchising Director under this section shall be paid into the Consolidated Fund.

74 Annual and other reports of the Regulator

(1) The Regulator shall, as soon as practicable after the end of the first relevant financial year and of each subsequent financial year, make to the Secretary of State a report on--

(a) his activities during that year; and

(b) the Monopolies Commission's activities during that year, so far as relating to references made by the Regulator.

(2) Every such report shall include--

(a) a general survey of developments, during the year to which it relates, in respect of matters falling within the scope of the Regulator's functions;

(b) general surveys of any developments during that year which relate to--

(i) the provision of railway passenger services or station services for, or the use of such services by, persons who are disabled; or

(ii) the employment by licence holders of persons who are disabled;

(c) a statement setting out any general directions given to the Regulator during that year under section 69(2) above; and

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