Section 101: General restrictions on disclosure of information., Telecommunications Act 1984

Subject to the following provisions of this section, no information with respect to any particular business which—

has been obtained under or by virtue of the provisions of this Act ... ; and

relates to the private affairs of any individual or to any particular business,

shall during the lifetime of that individual or so long as that business continues to be carried on, be disclosed without the consent of that individual or the person for the time being carrying on that business.

Subsection (1) above does not apply to any disclosure of information which is made—

for the purpose of facilitating the performance of any functions assigned ... to the Secretary of State, or OFCOM by or under this Act ... ;

for the purpose of facilitating the performance of any functions of any Minister, any Northern Ireland department, the head of any such department, the Competition and Markets Authority ; the Water Services Regulation Authority the Director General of Electricity Supply the Director General of Electricity Supply for Northern Ireland or the Director General of Gas for Northern Ireland the Office of Rail and Road , OFCOM , the Civil Aviation Authority or a local weights and measures authority in Great Britain under any of the enactments or subordinate legislation specified in subsection (3) below;

for the purpose of facilitating the carrying out by the Comptroller and Auditor General of any of his functions under any enactment;

in connection with the investigation of any criminal offence or for the purposes of any criminal proceedings; or

for the purpose of any civil proceedings brought under or by virtue of this Act or any of the enactments or subordinate legislation specified in subsection (3) below; ...

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

The enactments and subordinate legislation referred to in subsection (2) above are—

the Trade Descriptions Act 1968;

the 1973 Act;

the Consumer Credit Act 1974;

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

the Estate Agents Act 1979;

the 1980 Act.

the Consumer Protection Act 1987.

the Consumer Protection (Northern Ireland) Order 1987.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

the Water Act 1989 , or the Water Act 2003 or the Water Act 2014.

the Electricity Act 1989.

the Electricity (Northern Ireland) Order 1992.

The Gas (Northern Ireland) Order 1996;

the Railways Act 1993

the Competition Act 1998

Part I of the Transport Act 2000.

the Enterprise Act 2002

the Communications Act 2003 ...

the Railways Act 2005.

the Energy (Northern Ireland Order 2003;

the Water and Sewerage Services (Northern Ireland) Order 2006.

the Business Protection from Misleading Marketing Regulations 2008;

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Parts 3 and 4 of the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013;

the following provisions of the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024—

Part 3;

Chapter 1 of Part 4;

Chapter 2 of Part 5.

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

Any person who discloses any information in contravention of this section shall be guilty of an offence and liable—

on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding the statutory maximum;

on conviction on indictment, to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to a fine or to both.

Information obtained by OFCOM in the exercise of functions which are exercisable concurrently with the Competition and Markets Authority under Part I of the Competition Act 1998 is subject to Part 9 of the Enterprise Act 2002 (Information) and not to subsections (1) to (5) of this section.

Section 101: General restrictions on disclosure of information.

Discussed in

About this text