Citation and Commencement

1. These Regulations may be cited as the Merger (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 2001 and shall come into force on 1st June 2001.

Amendment of Merger (Fees) Regulations 1990

2. —(1) In the Merger (Fees) Regulations 1990( 2 ), regulation 5 (persons by whom fees are payable) is amended as follows.

(2) In paragraph (3) after the words “Subject to paragraph (5)” is inserted the words “or (6)”.

(3) After paragraph (5) is inserted:

“ (6) In a case falling within regulation 2(b) to (e), the person or group of persons specified in paragraph (2) or (3) above shall not be liable to pay the fee if:

(a) being a person of the kind described in paragraph (2) above, the enterprise carried on by him or under his control is one to which the notified arrangements relate and he will, if the notified arrangements are carried into effect, be in the position of a person or group of persons described in subparagraphs (b) or (c) below; or

(b) being a person or group of persons of the kind described in paragraph (3)(a) above, the relevant enterprise carried on by him or them or under his or their control will if the arrangements are carried into effect, or did if the arrangements have been carried into effect, cease to be distinct from the enterprises described in paragraph 3(a)(iv) or (v) above; or

(c) in the circumstances described in paragraph (3)(b)(i) or (ii) above he is a person or group of persons to whom paragraph (3)(b)(iii), (iv) or (v) above applies;

and the relevant enterprise carried on by that person or group of persons or under his or their control qualifies as small or medium sized.

(7) For the purposes of paragraph (6):—

(a) an enterprise qualifies as small or medium sized if, immediately before the time at which the fee would otherwise become payable—

(i) it satisfies the requirements to be small or medium sized set out in subsections (3) to (6) of section 247 of the Companies Act 1985 ( 3 ) (“the Act of 1985”) in its most recent financial year, whether or not the enterprise is a company; and

(ii) where it is a member of a group as defined in section 262 of the Act of 1985 (whether or not the enterprise is a company), that group qualifies as small or medium sized within the meaning of subsections (3) to (5) of section 249 of the Act of 1985 in its most recent financial year;

(b) a “relevant enterprise” is, in a case falling within paragraph (3)(a) above one to which the circumstances described in paragraph (3)(a)(i), (ii) or (iii) relate, or, in a case falling within paragraph (3)(b) above one to which the circumstances described in paragraph (3)(b)(i) or (ii) relate.

(8) Paragraph (6) shall not apply to fees becoming payable before 1st June 2001. ”

(4) In paragraph (c) of regulation 2 and paragraph (5) of regulation 5 for the words “section 29(1) of the Water Act 1989”( 4 ) are substituted the words “section 32(1) of the Water Industries Act 1991”( 5 ) and in paragraph 3(a)(iii) of regulation 5 for the words “section 29 of the Water Act 1989” are substituted the words “section 32 of the Water Industries Act 1991”.