Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon & East Chelmsford, Conservative)

I beg to move amendment No. 338, in

schedule 5, page 356, line 18, at end insert 'but such a revocation or modification may only be made—

(a) with the consent of that person, or

(b) where that person has contravened a condition or restriction of the grant and OFCOM consider that the revocation or the proposed modification is proportionate and appropriate in the circumstances of that contravention.'.

Mr Bill O'Brien (Normanton, Labour)

With this it will be convenient to take the following:

Amendment No. 339, in

schedule 5, page 356, leave out lines 22 to 40 and insert 'give notice of the proposal to the holder of the grant, and that notice shall state the reasons for the proposal.

(2) The holder of a grant who receives a notice under paragraph (1) shall be entitled to make representations to OFCOM within such period, not being less than one month after the day the notice was given to the holder, and OFCOM may, if they think fit, extend that period on one or more occasions.

(3) OFCOM may specify a shorter period than one month in the notice given under sub-paragraph (1) if—'.

Amendment No. 340, in

schedule 5, page 356, line 42, leave out 'or an urgent case'.

Amendment No. 341, in

schedule 5, page 357, line 2, leave out from 'appropriate' to end of line 3.

Amendment No. 342, in

schedule 5, page 357, line 4, leave out subparagraph (7).

Amendment No. 343, in

schedule 5, page 357, line 28, at end insert 'or such shorter period as may be agreed with the person to whom the notification was given'.

Amendment No. 344, in

schedule 5, page 357, line 30, leave out from 'proposal' to 'and' in line 31.

Amendment No. 345, in

schedule 5, page 357, line 41, leave out from 'modification' to 'compliance' in line 42 and insert 'in order to secure'.

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon & East Chelmsford, Conservative)

The amendments relate to schedule 5. Once recognised spectrum access is granted, by virtue of schedule 5(5), Ofcom

''may revoke . . . a grant of recognised spectrum access, or''

modify

''the restrictions or conditions to which . . . a grant is subject''.

However, there appears to be no constraint on the grounds on which Ofcom may modify or revoke a grant. For Ofcom to have such unfettered power to amend or remove an RSA during the period for which it has been granted must be contrary to the legitimate rights of the RSA holder. Therefore, we believe that paragraph 5 should be amended to limit Ofcom's power to modify or revoke RSA. That is the purpose of the amendments.

Mr Stephen Timms (Minister of State (e-Commerce & Competitiveness), Department of Trade and Industry; East Ham, Labour)

The communications sector is subject to rapid and unpredictable change and we need to give Ofcom sufficient powers to modify or revoke RSA when necessary and after due process. That power must be balanced against the rights of RSA holders. The schedule as drafted strikes the right balance.

Amendment No. 338 proposes that Ofcom should be able to revoke or modify RSA only with the holder's consent unless conditions are breached. That could create difficulties for Ofcom in circumstances such as the need for spectrum re-farming, or if problems of harmful interference arise due to some unforeseen problem—which may happen despite the best efforts of the spectrum manager. Such circumstances may not be frequent, but it is important that Ofcom has the power to act appropriately should the need arise. The amendment would tie Ofcom's hands unacceptably.

Modification or revocation of RSA will be subject to the full appeals procedure established under clauses

187 to 191, including appeal to the Competition Appeal Tribunal on merits. We will discuss those clauses shortly, but they will give a good deal of assurance that a fair balance is being struck.

Amendments Nos. 339 to 342 propose relaxing the period of notice for varying or revoking RSA. Again, the schedule as drafted strikes a fair and reasonable balance. Occasionally, Ofcom will have to act speedily. The period allowed in the schedule is the same as that allowed for licences. It follows the requirements of the new directives and there is no reason for doing things differently in the case of RSA.

Amendment No. 343 inserts a provision to permit holders to agree a shorter period of notice, but there is nothing in the present drafting to stop that being agreed so the amendment is unnecessary.

Amendment No. 344 proposes that Ofcom's proposals to revoke or modify RSAs should not then be modified. However, that would make the procedure much less flexible, especially if a late accommodation could be reached with the applicants, so the amendment is unhelpful.

Amendment No. 345 suggests amending the wording on how revocations or modification made to secure compliance with international obligations can override other provisions. The original wording gives Ofcom a margin of appreciation in judging what is necessary or expedient. However, it is subject to the right of appeal that I mentioned, so I see no need to amend the wording.

The amendments do not help the Committee and it would be better to leave things as they are.

Mr John Whittingdale (Maldon & East Chelmsford, Conservative)

Plainly, there will not be much meeting of minds this afternoon. In an attempt to make further progress in the short time available and without any enthusiasm, I beg to ask leave to withdraw the amendment.

Amendment, by leave, withdrawn.

Mr Stephen Timms (Minister of State (e-Commerce & Competitiveness), Department of Trade and Industry; East Ham, Labour)

I beg to move amendment No. 308, in

schedule 5, page 357, line 15, leave out 'vary or revoke' and insert 'revoke or modify'.

The amendment corrects a detailed drafting inconsistency in schedule 5. Paragraph 6(8) refers to

''a proposal to vary or revoke the grant''.

The amendment changes that wording to ''revoke or modify'' to make it consistent with language elsewhere in the schedule. I move the amendment with enthusiasm.

Amendment agreed to.

Schedule 5, as amended, agreed to.

Clause 155 ordered to stand part of the Bill.