Part 7: General Section 118: Commencement
The amendments to Ofcom’s powers in relation to the BBC came into force on Royal Assent. Section 112, giving HM Treasury the power to include payment institutions in the settlement finality regime, also came into force on Royal Assent, as did sections 115 and 116 in respect of the power to amend the Crown guarantee of pension liabilities under the Telecommunications Act 1984.
	A number of provisions will be brought into force two months after Royal Assent. These include the provision relating to universal service broadband obligations, powers for Ofcom to set general conditions on communication providers in respect of switching and automatic compensation as well as Ofcom’s powers to collect and report information. A number of technical matters in respect of spectrum and the provision relating to the direct marketing code will also be brought into force at the same time. Section 113 and Schedule 9 also come into force two months after Royal Assent, enabling HM Treasury to recognise non-interbank payment systems.
	A commencement date of 1 June 2020 will apply to the measure concerning the TV licence concession. The government has committed to maintain free TV licences for those aged 75 and over for the whole of this Parliament, with responsibility for the policy passing to the BBC in the next Parliament. The timing of the implementation of this measure was agreed with the BBC in July 2015.
	The remaining measures in the Act will be brought into force by regulations.