*The proposal for continuous 0-licensing, included in last month's Deregulation
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and Contracting Out Bill, could be good news for operators on two fronts: the Department of Transport estimates the move scheduled for introduction on 1 July 1995 will save operators £2.6 million a year from not having to advertise their 0-licence applications. However, local adverts will still need to be taken if the operator wishes to transfer the licence or change its status.
Operators will pay an annual fee for their licence which will be renewed automatically unless any misdemeanor by the operator is brought to the attention of the LAs. When renewing the licence the TAO is likely to send the operator a print-out of the details on his original licence and ask him if those details remain the same.
Exactly how this fee is to be collected is unclear: there is still talk of direct debiting.
The LAs will periodically check operators' licences but how and how often is not included in the legislation.
Operators will also save themselves some money in that they will not be called to automatic public inquiry on environmental grounds. The LAs will look at the number of objections over five years and then decide if an inquiry is necessary.