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Foreword to the Accounts |
History
and background
The Radiocommunications Agency is responsible for most non-military
radio spectrum matters in the UK. It was established as an Executive
Agency of the Department
of Trade and Industry (DTI) in April 1990. The Agency's objectives
are discussed in the preceding pages of the Annual Report. The Agency
is funded through the Department of Trade and Industry Request for Resources
1: Increasing UK Competitiveness.
HM Treasury's Accounts Direction dated 19 February 2003, under the provisions of Section 7(2) of the Government Resources and Accounts Act 2000, requires the Agency to comply with the accounting principles and disclosure requirements of the Resource and Accounting Manual that is in force for the financial year 2002-03. These accounts comply with the Accounts Direction.
Results
and appropriations
The surplus for the year amounted to £69.4m (2001-02: £57.7m
[restated]). Details of the amount surrendered to the DTI and other
movements on the General Fund are shown in Note
12.
There were no completed auctions of spectrum licences during the year, although the remaining broadband licences were offered again between October 2001 and October 2002. There is therefore no new provision for deferred income (see Notes 16 and 17 for more information).
The Agency achieved its key financial target for the year as stated in Note 3. Performance against other measures is listed on Tables 8 and 9 of the Annual Report.
Review
of activities
The activities of the Agency and development of its business are reviewed
in the Annual Report.
The Communications Bill, currently before Parliament, provides for the transfer of the Agency's functions to Ofcom, the new communications regulator, and subject to passage of the Bill, the Agency will become part of Ofcom at the end of 2003. The Agency has worked closely, initially with the other four merging regulators until the Ofcom Board was appointed, and then with the Ofcom implementation teams, to ensure that there will be a smooth and seamless transition at that date.
In the light of the growing demands on spectrum use, and the opportunities presented by the proposed new regulatory framework and greater use of market-based tools, the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry commissioned an independent review of the principles that should govern spectrum management to ensure efficient use of spectrum. The review was carried out during 2001-02 under the leadership of Professor Martin Cave, and the resulting report was published on 6 March 2002. The Government's response, published on 15 October 2002, accepted virtually all of the recommendations made, and work has commenced to implement them.
The Trade and Industry Committee also initiated a review of spectrum management during 2002. Its report, published in December 2002, largely supported the general direction of spectrum management policy, but was critical of the proposal for recognised spectrum access, introduced in the Communications Bill, and made a number of detailed observations. The Government response, published on 14 March 2003, took note of the Committee's conclusions but upheld the proposal on RSA.
The joint venture company, Radio Spectrum International Consulting Limited (RSI), traded profitably in its business of providing the resources required to meet the Agency's IT needs. RSI also continued its efforts to build on the Agency's internal connections by providing consultancy services to overseas administrations. See Note 8 for details. The Agency's share of RSI's dividend for the year ended 31 December 2002 was £417,900.
There are no other special factors that affect these accounts.
Fixed
assets
The changes in fixed assets are detailed in Note
7 to the accounts.
The Agency continues to invest heavily in IT to improve its services to customers, and to contribute to the Government's e-commerce targets. There has also been substantial investment in new equipment to monitor spectrum use.
Future developments
Office
of Communications (Ofcom)
The White Paper, 'A New Future for Communications', proposed a single
new regulatory body and single regulatory framework for the communications
sector, which will be realised in the Office
of Communications.
Ofcom will replace five existing regulatory bodies, including the Radiocommunications Agency. The other bodies are the Broadcasting Standards Commission, the Office of Telecommunications, the Independent Television Commission and the Radio Authority.
Ofcom was formally set up in July 2002 by paving legislation, the Office of Communications Act 2002. The current Communications Bill will provide the statutory authority for the transfer of the functions of the five regulators to Ofcom. The Bill is expected to receive Royal Assent in July 2003 and, as a result, the Radiocommunications Agency is likely to transfer into Ofcom at the end of 2003. Ofcom will become fully operational on the transfer of the regulators' functions.
It is expected that the Agency's assets and liabilities, together with its functions, will be transferred fully to Ofcom, and the accounts for 2002-03 are therefore produced on a going concern basis.
The Agency's management continues to be committed to modernising business processes in order to improve efficiency and customer service, in line with the objectives of the Modernising Government initiative. The Agency's proposals are, however, now taken forward in consultation with Ofcom to ensure that its views are taken into account.
Pensions
Past and present employees are covered by the provisions of the Principal
Civil Service Pension Scheme (PCSPS), which are described in Note 1(m)
of the Accounts. Pension benefits are provided through the Civil Service
pension arrangements. From 1 October 2002, civil servants may be in
one of three statutory-based 'final salary' defined benefit
schemes (classic, premium and classic plus), and these are outlined
in Note 4.
Management
Board
The Chief Executive is the Accounting Officer responsible for the day-to-day
running of the Agency. She is assisted by the Agency's Management
Board, which comprises the Chief Executive and Directors responsible
for each Executive:
| David
Hendon (transferred to DTI on 8 April 2002) |
Chief Executive |
|
Rolande
Anderson |
Chief Executive |
| Mike
Goddard (acting Chief Executive from 8 April to 14 July 2002) |
Director – International & Spectrum Policy |
| Hazel Canter | Director – Spectrum Services |
| Barry Maxwell | Director – Customer Services |
| Chris
de Grouchy (transferred to DEFRA on 27 October 2002) |
Director – Corporate Services & Facilities |
| David
Smith (transferred from DTI on 2 December 2002) |
Director – Corporate Services & Facilities |
The Chief Executive and Directors are appointed in accordance with the terms of the Civil Service Management Code. Information on their remuneration is given in Note 4.
Steering Board
Chairman:
Mr Mark Gibson
Director General
Business Group, DTI
Members:
| Ms
Jane Tozer Managing Director JET Consulting |
Mr
Bill Dennay Consultant Quantel |
| Mr Alan
Wright |
Mr David Edmonds Director General Office of Telecommunications (Oftel) |
| Mr Rob Meakin Consultant Marconi Group |
Mr David Hendon Director Communications and Information Industries Division, DTI (until 7 April 2002 – Chief Executive, Radiocommunications Agency) |
| Mr Mike Goddard
Radiocommunications Agency (acting Chief Executive from 8 April to 14 July 2002) |
Ms Rolande Anderson Radiocommunications Agency (Chief Executive from 15 July 2002) |
| Mr William McIntyre
CB Director Communications and Information Industries Division, DTI (resigned 5 April 2002) |
Dr Phillipa
Lloyd |
Members of the Steering Board who are not civil servants are offered fees of £4,000 per annum, and reimbursement of reasonable travelling expenses. Members who are civil servants do not receive these fees.
Supplier
payment policy
The Agency aims to pay valid invoices within 30 days of receipt or as
agreed with suppliers. In 2002-03, this was achieved for 100% of invoices.
No payments were made under the Late Payment of Commercial Debt (Interest)
Act 1998.
Disabled
persons
The Agency's policy is to promote equal opportunity for all, regardless
of disability. Wherever possible, every effort will be made to ensure
that staff stay in their current post should they become disabled as
an employee in the Agency; alternatively, wherever possible they will
be provided with an alternative post that uses their expertise. The
Agency was accredited with the Disability Two Ticks Symbol in June 2001
and has been applying the principles of this commitment. We were re-accredited
in 2002.
Equal
opportunities and diversity
The Agency is committed to the principle of equality of opportunity,
and respects the diverse society that it operates in. Being fair to
people and recognising that they have different skills and attributes
to contribute is at the heart of that commitment. The aim is to ensure
that all employees and job applicants are treated equally, regardless
of their gender, marital status, race, colour, ethnic or national origin,
nationality, sexuality, disability, age, religion, employment status
or trade union activities.
The Chief Executive has continued to support a programme of action to implement and reinforce our equal opportunities and diversity policy, as described in the Annual Report. Our policy is line with the DTI policy and builds on statutory obligations of employers under the Sex Discrimination Act 1975, the Race Relations Act 1976 and the Disability Discrimination Act 1995. We are also continuing to work with other Ofcom regulators to share best practices.
Employee
involvement
The Agency encourages teamwork and communication between staff at all
levels in the organisation. Business and other issues that may be of
interest or concern are brought to the attention of staff at various
levels in a variety of ways.
There is ongoing dialogue, both formal and informal, with trade union representatives.
The Agency is committed to training and developing its staff as an integral part of achieving business success, as exemplified by its re-accreditation to the new Investors in People standard in May 2002. Details of current development programmes are given in the Annual Report.
Auditors
These accounts have been audited by the Comptroller and Auditor General.
Rolande Anderson
Chief Executive
9 July 2003
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