Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 - extension to Jersey

STATES OF JERSEY

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WIRELESS TELEGRAPHY ACT 2006: EXTENSION TO JERSEY

Lodged au Greffe on 26th September 2006 by the Chief Minister

STATES GREFFE

PROPOSITION

THE STATES are asked to decide whether they are of opinion

to s ig nify, pursuant to Article 31(1)(b) of the States of Jersey Law 2005, whether they agree that a request

be made to the Privy Council for the making of an Order in Council that would extend to Jersey, with appropriate modifications and adaptations, the provisions of the Wireless Telegraphy Act 2006 as summarised in the report of the Chief Minister dated 26th September 2006.

CHIEF MINISTER

REPORT

Executive Summary

1. T h e essential purpose of this Proposition is to request the States toconsiderwhether to agreeto the extension to Jersey of the provisionsof the Wireless Telegraphy Bill 2006, whichare listed below, with modifications suitable to the applicationofthose provisions to Jersey, in orderto continue in effect the regime of regulation of wireless telegraphy which, though modified over the years, has applied inJersey since 1952. The statutory provisions cover the whole range of wireless telegraphy regulation from managing theavailableradiospectrum,measures to avoidor reduce radio interference to licensing of radio stations and equipment.
2. T h e matter is urgentbecauseit is very important that thenew regime takes effect in Jersey at the same time that ittakes effect in the United Kingdom,which will beon 23rd January 2007. OFCOM, the U.K. licensing body, will begin operating the new licensing systemon that date in theU.K.and will notbe able to operate concurrently the old system in respect of Jersey. A hiatusin the licensing system in Jersey could be very difficult to manage.

Historical background

3. W i reless telegraphy was inventedbyMarconi in 1896. Itis defined (in the Wireless Telegraphy Bill) as "the emitting or receiving, overpaths that are not provided byany material substance constructed or arranged forthe purpose, of[electromagneticenergyofcertainfrequencies]". (Clause 116).Regulation of wireless telegraphy stations in the United Kingdombegan in 1904under legislation which prohibited the establishment of such stations without a licence from the PostmasterGeneral.
4. T h e main Statute, for many years, has been the Wireless Telegraphy Act1949,which regulates wireless telegraphy generally and some provisions ofwhichapply to allstationsandapparatusinorover the United Kingdom and its territorial waters and such stationsorapparatuson any U.K. registered ship or aircraft. The1949Actwasextendedto Jersey (and Guernsey)byOrder in Council, in 1952.
5. T h e 1949Act has been amended a numberoftimesandthoseamendmentshave,whererelevant, been extendedto Jersey. Theamendingstatutes include the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1967, the Marine & etc. Broadcasting OffencesAct 1967, TelecommunicationsAct1984, the Wireless Telegraphy Act 1998and the Broadcasting Act 1990. The most wide-ranging and significant changes were made by the CommunicationsAct2003,which conferred on the independent regulator OFCOM,establishedunder the Office ofCommunicationsAct 2002, the functions exercised hitherto bythePostMasterGeneraland subsequently by the Secretary of State.
6. T h e UnitedKingdomGovernmentdecided some time ago that the 1949Actandsubsequentamendments required consolidating into a single Act and therefore introduced theWireless Telegraphy Bill in April 2006. The bill had its first reading in the House of Commons on 3rd July 2006, will complete its Parliamentary process on 9th October, receiving Royal assent on 23rd October(accordingly, it will bean Act when this Proposition is debated by the States) and will come into force 3 months thereafter, on 23rd January 2007. As mentioned, this is a consolidation bill, to which special Parliamentary rules and procedures apply; in particular, a consolidating measure cannot change the existing law, but draws together the existing measures into a single Act.
7. T h e extension ofthe Bill will not therefore represent anymaterialchangein the lawin Jersey because most of the existing legislation, with necessarymodifications,has already beenextendedto Jersey by OrderinCouncil and is applicable in the Island.
8. D u ring consultation on the draft bill, the Island Authorities requested that a clause beincludedtopermit the extension of the Act to Jersey (a so called permissive extent provision), so that, if the Island Authorities so wish the provisions maybemade applicable to Jersey, withappropriate modifications and adaptations, byOrderinCouncil.

9. T  h e aim ofextending the legislation to Jersey is to ensure consistent application in the Bailiwickof regulation  and other matters  relating  to the  establishment  and  use  of wireless telegraphy  stations, apparatus and useofradiospectrum,which include transboundary issues.
10. T h e scope of the Bill will include matters such as –

• t h e f unctions of OFCOM

• l ic e n sing of wireless telegraphy and fees

• g r a n ts of recognised spectrum access and charges

• m  a n agement of radio spectrum

• e n f o rcement in relation to unauthorised use etc.

• p r o v isions in relation to misuse

• r e g u lation and approval of apparatus

• i n te r ference and restrictions on use

• p r o h ibition of broadcasting from sea or air

• p o w  ers of enforcement etc.

D e ta i ls of the U.K. bill can be found at:

h tt p :/ /www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/pabills/200506/wireless_telegraphy.htm

A co p y of the Bill may also be inspected at the States Bookshop.

11. It i s proposed to ask for extension ofthefollowing provisions of the Bill –

In Part 1 (General Provisions about radio spectrum) – Section 1 and sections 3 to 7;

In Part 2 (Regulation of radio spectrum) –

Chapter 1 (Wireless telegraphy licences) – the whole Chapter;

Chapter 2 (Grants of recognised spectrum) – sections 27 to 29 and 31 to 34; Chapter 3 (Management of Radio spectrum) – sections 27 to 29 and 31 to 34; Chapter 4 (Enforcement) – the whole chapter;

Chapter 5 (Miscellaneous) – sections 45 to 50 and 52 and 53.

Part 4 (Approval of apparatus);

Part 5 (Prohibition of broadcasting from sea or air);

In Part 6 (General) sections 97 to 103, 105 to 108, 110 to 119 and 122 to 126; Schedules 1 to 3, 4, 5 and 7 to 9.

12. A numberof the existing Orders in Council extending thecurrentwireless telegraphy legislation to Jersey will have to be revoked, in their application to Jersey, oramended.These will include thefollowing –

The Wireless Telegraphy (Channel Islands) (Order 1952;

The Marine & etc. Broadcasting (Offences) (Jersey) Order 1967; The Wireless Telegraphy (Channel Islands) Order 1967;

The Wireless Telegraphy (Jersey) Order 1968;

The Wireless Telegraphy (Jersey) Order 2003;

The Communications (Jersey) Order 2003.

13. B e fore anOrder in Council is madeextending the provisions of the Bill, the viewsof the Statesof Jersey have to be sought,by virtue of Article 31of the States of Jersey Law 2005whichrequires that where it is proposed that anOrderinCouncil should be made extending to Jersey the provisions of a U.K.Actof

Parliament, the Chief Minister shall lodge the proposal in order that the States may signify their views on it.

14. T h e Order in Council, once made, will be registered inthe Royal Court before coming into force in Jersey on the same date as the Acttakes effect intheU.K.,namely 23rd January 2007.
15. If the States signify theiragreementwith the Proposition, the draftOrderinCouncil will beprepared in consultation with officials in theLawOfficers' Departmentand the EconomicDevelopmentDepartment and Legal Advisers and other officials intheDepartmentfor Constitutional Affairs and the Departmentof TradeandIndustry in theUnitedKingdom. Once the final version isprepared in accordancewith the instructions from the Island Authorities, the draftOrder will be approved bythe Minister forEconomic Developmentand submitted tothePrivyCouncil to bemadeat its meeting on 14th December 2006.
16. T h isis the first time that the procedure under Article 31 of the 2005 Law has been requiredtobe followed.

Manpower and resource implications

Inasmuch as the Order will extend existing legislation to Jersey, there will be no additional manpower, revenue, capital or further legislative requirements arising.