46A.— (1) If regulations specified in Part 2 of Schedule 1 (inserted by section 18 of the Communications Regulation (Amendment) Act 2007) that give effect to a provision of the treaties governing the European Communities, or an act, or provision of an act, adopted by an institution of those Communities, create an offence that is triable summarily, and the Minister considers it is necessary to do so for the purpose of giving effect to the provision or act, the Minister may, by regulations, amend the regulations—

(a) to provide for the offence to be also triable on indictment, and

(b) subject to subsection (6), to make such provision as the Minister considers necessary for the purpose of ensuring that penalties in respect of the offence are effective and proportionate, and have a deterrent effect, having regard to the acts or omissions to which the offence relates.

(2) If regulations specified in Part 2 of Schedule 1 that give effect to a provision of the treaties governing the European Communities, or an act, or provision of an act, adopted by an institution of those Communities, prohibit or require the doing of an act, the Minister may, where he or she considers it necessary for the purpose of giving effect to the provision or act, make regulations amending the first-mentioned regulations—

(a) to provide that a contravention of the prohibited act, or a failure or refusal to perform the required act, is an offence,

(b) to provide for the offence to be triable—

(i) summarily, or

(ii) on indictment, if the Minister considers it necessary for the purpose of giving effect to the provision or act concerned, and

(c) subject to subsection (6), to make such provision as the Minister considers necessary for the purpose of ensuring that penalties in respect of the offence are effective and proportionate, and have a deterrent effect, having regard to the acts or omissions to which the offence relates.

(3) The Minister may make regulations for the purpose of giving effect to a provision of the treaties governing the European Communities, or an act, or provision of an act, adopted by an institution of those Communities, relating to—

(a) the provision of an electronic communications service, an electronic communications network or an associated facility, or

(b) the radio frequency spectrum or national numbering resource, or

(c) a postal service.

(4) Regulations under subsection (3) may contain such incidental, supplementary and consequential provisions as appear to the Minister to be necessary for the purposes of those regulations (including provisions repealing, amending or applying, with or without modification, a related enactment).

(5) Regulations under subsection (3) may—

(a) provide for an offence under those regulations to be triable—

(i) summarily, or

(ii) on indictment, if the Minister considers it necessary for the purpose of giving effect to the provision or act referred to in subsection (3),

and

(b) subject to subsection (6), make such provision as the Minister considers necessary for the purpose of ensuring that penalties in respect of the offence are effective and proportionate, and have a deterrent effect, having regard to the act or omission to which the offence relates.

(6) The maximum fine that may be provided for in regulations under this section shall—

(a) in respect of the conviction on indictment of a body corporate of an offence under the regulations, not be greater than—

(i) €5,000,000, or

(ii) if 10 per cent of the turnover of the body is greater than that amount, an amount equal to that percentage,

or

(b) in respect of the conviction on indictment of any other person of such an offence, not be greater than €500,000.

(7) If the Minister considers it necessary to do so for the purpose of giving full effect to a provision of the treaties governing the European Communities, or to an act, or provision of an act, adopted by an institution of those Communities, the Minister may, in regulations under subsection (1), (2) or (3), provide—

(a) for the High Court, on application by the Commission or some other person specified in the regulations, to make—

(i) an order requiring a specified person, or a person belonging to a specified class, to comply with an obligation imposed by or under the regulations, or

(ii) an order restraining such a person from continuing to contravene a prohibition or restriction specified in or under the regulations,

and

(b) for the High Court, on being satisfied that such a person has failed to comply with such an obligation, or has contravened such a prohibition or restriction, to order the person to pay a financial penalty of such amount as the Court considers appropriate, having regard to the circumstances of the failure to comply or contravention, including—

(i) the duration of the failure to comply or the contravention,

(ii) the effect of the failure to comply or contravention on consumers or users of the service or product provided or supplied by the person and on the person’s competitors,

(iii) the submissions of the Commission as to the appropriate amount of the penalty to be imposed, and

(iv) any excuse or explanation given by the person with respect to the failure to comply or contravention.

(8) If the Minister considers it necessary to do so for the purpose of giving full effect to a provision of the treaties governing the European Communities, or to an act, or provision of an act, adopted by an institution of those Communities, the Minister may, in regulations under subsection (1), (2) or (3), provide—

(a) that if, after being convicted of an offence, a person continues to do the prohibited act, or to fail to do the required act, the person commits a further offence on each day or part of a day during which the act or failure continues, and

(b) that the person is to be liable on conviction for the further offence—

(i) if tried summarily, to a fine not exceeding €500, or

(ii) if tried on indictment, to a fine not exceeding €5,000.

However, if the regulations concerned provide for a person to be tried summarily for further offences that are alleged to have been committed on successive days, then, irrespective of anything to the contrary in the regulations concerned, the maximum fine that can be imposed for those offences under those regulations is €5,000.

(9) Section 2 of the Ministers and Secretaries (Amendment) (No. 2) Act 1977 does not apply to a power to make regulations for a purpose referred to in subsection (1), (2) or (3).

(10) In this section—

"European Communities" and "treaties governing the European Communities" have the same meanings as they have in the European Communities Act 1972; and

"turnover" means, in relation to a body corporate, the turnover of the body in the financial year of the body ending immediately before the financial year in which the offence of which the body has been convicted was committed.]