Part 2: Air traffic Section 9: Licensed air traffic services: modifying the licence and related appeals
Section 9 substitutes section 11 of the 2000 Act with new sections 11 to 11B. Without this amendment, licence modifications could only be made by agreement between the CAA and the licence holder, or following a reference to, and investigation by, the Competition and Markets Authority ("CMA"). The licence when granted contains provisions which are either conditions or terms (each are defined in new section 40(6) and (6A) of the 2000 Act respectively). A term relates to matters such as the duration of a licence and the area in respect of which the licence authorises the provision of air traffic services, whereas a condition relates to operational matters, such as the licence holder’s obligations on safety and efficiency. New section 11 (modification of a licence) enables the CAA to modify a licence by modifying a licence condition and the Secretary of State to modify terms relating to the duration of a licence, and other terms prescribed by regulations, subject to the applicable procedural constraints set out in new sections 11A and 11B.
	New section 11A (modification of a licence: procedure) sets out the licence modification procedure and the steps that the CAA and Secretary of State must follow when modifying a licence, including provision for which persons must be consulted about a proposed modification, giving reasons for a proposed modification and for a decision to make, or not make, the proposed modification, and the timeline governing this process.
	New section 11B (restrictions on power to modify licence conditions) prohibits the CAA from making a modification if the Secretary of State directs it not to do so.
	Subsection (2) of section 9 also repeals sections 12 to 18 of the 2000 Act, which made provision for a reference to the CMA, and an investigation by it, to consider whether certain matters relating to the provision of air traffic services by the licence holder operate against the public interest and, if so, whether the effects could be remedied or prevented by a change to the licence conditions. This process would have been used where the CAA and the licence holder could not agree a licence modification.
	Section 9 also makes provision for appeals against modifications of licence conditions, which is included in Schedule 3 and the related appeals procedure, which is inserted into the 2000 Act by Schedule 4.