Competition
Regulatory Authority (Jersey) Law 2001[1]
A LAW to constitute a body corporate
to be known as the Jersey Competition Regulatory Authority and for matters
ancillary thereto
Commencement
[see
endnotes]
1 Interpretation[2]
In this Law, unless the
context otherwise requires –
“Authority” means the Jersey Competition Regulatory
Authority established by Article 2;
“Comptroller and Auditor General” has the same meaning
as in the Comptroller and Auditor
General (Jersey) Law 2014;
“financial year” means financial year of the Authority,
being the period beginning with the day on which Article 2 comes into
force and ending with 31st December in the following year, and each subsequent
period of 12 months ending with 31st December in each year;
“function” includes power, authority and duty;
“member” means member of the Authority;
“Minister” means the Minister for Sustainable
Economic Development.
2 Establishment
of Authority
(1) The Jersey Competition
Regulatory Authority is established.
(2) The Authority shall be
a body corporate with perpetual succession and a common seal and
may –
(a) sue
and be sued in its corporate name;
(b) enter
into contracts and acquire, hold and dispose of any property; and
(c) so
far as is possible for a body corporate, exercise the rights, powers and
privileges and incur the liabilities and obligations of a natural person of
full age and capacity.
(3) The application of the
common seal of the Authority shall be authenticated by the signature of a person
authorized by the Authority to sign on its behalf and every document bearing
the imprint of the seal of the Authority shall be deemed to be properly sealed
unless the contrary is proved.
(4) Save as this Law
provides to the contrary, the Authority shall be independent of the Minister
and of the States and neither the Minister nor the States shall be liable for
any act or omission or debt or other obligation of the Authority.
(5) The Authority may
regulate its own proceedings.
3 Appointment
of members
(1) The Authority shall
consist of –
(a) one
member appointed by the Minister as Chairman of the Authority; and
(b) 2 or
more other members appointed by the Minister after he or she has consulted the
member who has been appointed as Chairman.[3]
(2) A person is not
disqualified from holding office as a member because the person is an officer,
employee or agent of the Authority.
(3) Article 2 of the States of Jersey (Appointment
Procedures) (Jersey) Law 2018 shall apply to the appointment of the Chairman
of the Authority.[4]
(3A) The Minister shall notify the
States of the appointments that the Minister has made under paragraph (1)(b).[5]
(4) The rights and obligations of
the Authority, and the performance of its functions, shall not be affected by
any vacancy in its membership or any defect in the appointment of a member.
4 Terms
of appointment of members
(1) A member shall hold and
vacate office in accordance with the terms of the member’s appointment.
(2) A member shall be
appointed for a period not exceeding 5 years and upon expiry of such period
shall be eligible for reappointment.
(3) A member may at any
time resign his or her office by giving notice in accordance with the terms of the
member’s appointment.
(4) The States may, on the
recommendation of the Minister, revoke the appointment of the member appointed
as Chairman if the States are satisfied that the member –
(a) has
been absent from meetings of the Authority for a period longer than 6
consecutive months without the permission of the Authority;
(b) has
neglected the duties of a member or has engaged in misconduct;
(c) is an
undischarged bankrupt; or
(d) is
incapacitated by physical or mental illness.
(5) The Minister may revoke
the appointment of a member, other than the member appointed as Chairman, if
the Minister is satisfied that any of the circumstances referred to in paragraph (4)(a)
– (d) apply to the member.
(6) Article 3 of the States of Jersey (Appointment
Procedures) (Jersey) Law 2018 shall apply to the termination of the
appointment of a member of the Authority, other than the Chairman.[6]
5 Remuneration
of members
(1) The Authority shall pay
to the members –
(a) such
remuneration as the Minister determines; and
(b) if
the Minister so determines, reasonable out-of-pocket or other expenses
occasioned in the course of carrying out their duties.
(2) The Authority shall
also make for the members (or persons who have been members) such provision (if
any) for pensions, allowances or gratuities, and payments when special
circumstances arise, as the Minister directs.
6 Functions
(1) The Authority shall
have such functions as are conferred on it by or under this or any other Law or
any other enactment.
(2) The Authority may
recognize or establish, or assist or encourage the establishment of, bodies
that have expertise in, or represent persons having interests in, any matter
concerning competition, monopolies, utilities or any matter connected with the
provision of goods or services to which the Authority’s functions relate.
(3) The functions of those
bodies shall include one or more of the following –
(a) the
provision to the Authority of advice, information and proposals in relation to
any one or more of those matters;
(b) the
representation of the views of any one or more of those persons.
(4) The Authority may, on
request by the Minister, provide the Minister with reports, advice, assistance
and information in relation to any matter referred to in paragraph (2).
(5) The Authority shall
have power to do anything that is calculated to facilitate, or is incidental or
conducive to, the performance of any of its functions.
7 Committees
(1) The Authority may
establish committees whose members may, but need not, be members, officers,
employees, or agents, of the Authority.
(2) A committee of the
Authority may itself establish sub-committees whose members may, but need not,
be members of the committee or members, officers, employees, or agents, of the
Authority.
8 Staff
(1) The Authority may
appoint such officers, employees and agents as it considers necessary for the
performance of its functions.
(2) The Authority
may –
(a) make
those appointments on such terms as to remuneration, the payment of expenses,
and other conditions of service, as it thinks fit; and
(b) establish
and maintain such schemes or make such other arrangements as it thinks fit for
the payment of pensions and other benefits in respect of its officers and
employees.
9 Delegation
(1) The Authority may
delegate any of its functions under this or any other enactment wholly or
partly to –
(a) the
Chairman;
(b) another
member;
(c) an
officer or employee of the Authority; or
(d) a committee
whose member or members are drawn only from the members, officers and employees
of the Authority.
(2) Nothing in this Article
shall authorize the Authority to delegate –
(a) this
power of delegation; or
(b) the
function of reviewing any of its decisions.
(3) The delegation of any
functions under this Article –
(a) shall
not prevent the performance of those functions by the Authority itself; and
(b) may
be amended or revoked by the Authority.
10 Minister
may guide or direct Authority in certain matters
(1) The Minister may, if he
or she considers that it is desirable in the public interest to do so, give to
the Authority written guidance, or general written directions, on matters
relating to corporate governance, that is, relating to the system and arrangements
by and under which the Authority is directed and controlled.
(2) Those matters may
include matters relating to accountability, efficiency, and economy of
operation, of the Authority, but not matters relating directly to the
performance of the Authority’s licensing or regulatory functions or its
functions under Article 6(2) or (4).
(3) In particular, but
without limiting paragraphs (1) and (2), the guidance or directions may
relate to conflicts of interest, the accounts of the Authority and their audit,
borrowing by the Authority and the investment of the funds of the Authority.
(4) It shall be the duty of
the Authority to have regard to any guidance, and to act in accordance with any
directions, given to it by the Minister under this Article.
(5) The Minister shall not
give guidance or directions under this Article without first consulting the
Authority.
11 [7]
12 Fees
and charges
The Authority may charge, retain and apply in the performance of its
functions –
(a) fees and charges of
such amounts, paid by such persons, and paid in such manner, as may be
specified by or under this or any other enactment;
(b) fees for the
performance of its function under Article 6(4);
(c) such fees and charges
(not inconsistent with this or any other enactment) of such amounts, paid by
such persons, and paid in such manner, as may be decided by the Authority in
respect of any service, item, or matter, that does not arise under this or any
other enactment; and
(d) such fees and charges
(not inconsistent with this or any other enactment) as may be agreed between
the Authority and any person for whom the Authority provides advice, assistance
or other services under this or any other enactment, in respect of the advice,
assistance or other services.
13 Grants
to Authority
(1) The States may make a
grant to the Authority from their annual income towards the expenses of the
formation of the Authority and its initial expenses.
(2) In respect of each
financial year, the States may make a grant to the Authority from their annual
income towards the Authority’s expenses in performing any of its
functions.
(3) The amount of any grant
referred to in paragraph (1) or (2) shall be determined by the Minister
for Treasury and Resources on the recommendation of the Chief Minister made
after consultation with the Authority.[8]
(4) In determining that
amount, the Minister for Treasury and Resources shall have regard to the actual
financial position and the projected financial position of the Authority.
(5) In making that
recommendation, the Chief Minister shall have regard to the actual financial
position and the projected financial position of the Authority.[9]
14 Consent
to borrowing
(1) The Authority shall not
borrow money without the consent of the Chief Minister.[10]
(2) The Minister for Treasury
and Resources may, on such terms as he or she may determine, on behalf of the
States –
(a) guarantee
the liabilities of the Authority; or
(b) lend
money to the Authority.
(3) The Minister for
Treasury and Resources may act under paragraph (2) only on the
recommendation of the Chief Minister.[11]
15 Guidelines
on investment
The Authority shall, in investing any of its funds, comply with any
guidelines specified by the Minister.
16 Exemption
from income tax
The income of the Authority shall not be liable to income tax under
the Income Tax (Jersey)
Law 1961.
17 Accounts
and audit
(1) The Authority
shall –
(a) keep
proper accounts and proper records in relation to the accounts; and
(b) prepare
accounts in respect of each financial year and, after the accounts have been
audited in accordance with paragraph (3), provide these to the Minister as
soon as practicable after the end of the financial year to which they relate,
but in no case later than 4 months after the end of that year.[12]
(2) The Minister shall lay
a copy of the accounts so provided before the States as soon as practicable
after the Minister receives the report.
(3) The accounts of the
Authority shall –
(a) be
audited by auditors appointed in respect of each financial year by the Comptroller
and Auditor General; and
(b) be
prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles and show a
true and fair view of the profit or loss of the Authority for the period to
which they relate and of the state of the Authority’s affairs at the end
of the period.[13]
(4) Article 113 of the
Companies (Jersey)
Law 1991 shall apply to an auditor and the auditor’s appointment
referred to in this Article as if the Authority were a company within the
meaning of the first-mentioned Article and the appointment were under Article 109
of that Law.
18 Annual
report
(1) The Authority shall
prepare a report on its activities in each of its financial years.
(2) The Authority shall
provide the Minister with the report as soon as practicable after the end of
the financial year to which the report relates, but in no case later than 4 months
after the end of that year.
(3) The Minister shall lay
a copy of the report so provided before the States as soon as practicable after
the Minister receives the report.
19 Limitation
of liability
(1) A person or body to
whom this Article applies shall not be liable in damages for anything done or
omitted in the performance or purported performance of any functions of the
Authority conferred by or under this Law or any other enactment, or any other
functions conferred by or under this Law, unless it is shown that the act or
omission was in bad faith.
(2) This Article applies to
the following –
(a) the
States;
(b) the
Minister or any person who is, or is acting as, an officer, employee or agent
of the Authority, or performing any function on behalf of the Authority;
(c) the
Authority, any member of the Authority, or any person who is, or is acting as,
an officer, employee or agent of the Authority or performing any function on
behalf of the Authority.
20 Orders
(1) The Minister may by Order
make provision for the purpose of carrying this Law into effect.
(2) An Order made under
this Law may –
(a) make
different provision in relation to different cases or circumstances; and
(b) contain
such transitional, consequential, incidental or supplementary provisions as
appear to the Minister to be necessary or expedient for the purposes of the Order.
(3) [14]
21 Citation
This Law may be cited as the Competition Regulatory Authority
(Jersey) Law 2001.