Article 19
Independence of the staff and the management of the transmission system operator
1. Decisions regarding the appointment and renewal, working conditions including remuneration, and termination of the term of office of the persons responsible for the management and/or members of the administrative bodies of the transmission system operator shall be taken by the Supervisory Body of the transmis sion system operator appointed in accordance with Article 20.
2. The identity and the conditions governing the term, the duration and the termination of office of the persons nominated by the Supervisory Body for appointment or renewal as persons responsible for the executive management and/or as members of the administrative bodies of the transmission system operator, and the reasons for any proposed decision terminating such term of office, shall be notified to the regulatory authority. Those con ditions and the decisions referred to in paragraph 1 shall become binding only if the regulatory authority has raised no objections within three weeks of notification.
The regulatory authority may object to the decisions referred to in paragraph 1 where:
(a) doubts arise as to the professional independence of a nomi nated person responsible for the management and/or mem ber of the administrative bodies; or
(b) in the case of premature termination of a term of office, doubts exist regarding the justification of such premature termination.
3. No professional position or responsibility, interest or busi ness relationship, directly or indirectly, with the vertically inte grated undertaking or any part of it or its controlling shareholders other than the transmission system operator shall be exercised for a period of three years before the appointment of the persons responsible for the management and/or members of the admin istrative bodies of the transmission system operator who are sub ject to this paragraph.
4. The persons responsible for the management and/or mem bers of the administrative bodies, and employees of the transmis sion system operator shall have no other professional position or responsibility, interest or business relationship, directly or indi rectly, with any other part of the vertically integrated undertaking or with its controlling shareholders.
5. The persons responsible for the management and/or mem bers of the administrative bodies, and employees of the transmis sion system operator shall hold no interest in or receive any financial benefit, directly or indirectly, from any part of the ver tically integrated undertaking other than the transmission system operator. Their remuneration shall not depend on activities or results of the vertically integrated undertaking other than those of the transmission system operator.
6. Effective rights of appeal to the regulatory authority shall be guaranteed for any complaints by the persons responsible for the management and/or members of the administrative bodies of the transmission system operator against premature terminations of their term of office.
7. After termination of their term of office in the transmission system operator, the persons responsible for its management and/or members of its administrative bodies shall have no profes sional position or responsibility, interest or business relationship with any part of the vertically integrated undertaking other than the transmission system operator, or with its controlling share holders for a period of not less than four years.
8. Paragraph 3 shall apply to the majority of the persons responsible for the management and/or members of the admin istrative bodies of the transmission system operator.
The persons responsible for the management and/or members of the administrative bodies of the transmission system operator who are not subject to paragraph 3 shall have exercised no man agement or other relevant activity in the vertically integrated undertaking for a period of at least six months before their appointment.
The first subparagraph of this paragraph and paragraphs 4 to 7 shall be applicable to all the persons belonging to the executive management and to those directly reporting to them on matters related to the operation, maintenance or development of the network.
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