The review is timely, particularly as cost of living pressures underscore the role of competition in helping to keep prices down
Seeking stakeholder input
On 24 August 2023, the CMA launched a three-month consultation as part of its review of the competition concurrency arrangements. Concurrency is the framework within which the UK’s competition authority and eight sectoral regulators, including the FCA and Ofcom, share certain competition powers – e.g. market studies under the Enterprise Act 2002 and Competition Act 1998 enforcement. It also defines the responsibility of these organisations to work together to promote competition in the industries they oversee. The CMA has launched its review with a call for inputs and is seeking a diverse range of views on the existing concurrency arrangements, which were outlined in the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act 2013.
2013 legislation introduced some significant reforms
Concurrent powers are a long-standing feature of the UK’s competition regime and were enhanced significantly by the 2013 legislation. Key reforms include the introduction of rules on the allocation of Competition Act 1998 cases between sectoral regulators and the CMA, and a requirement on the CMA to report annually on the operation of the concurrency arrangements, which the Government considered would give authorities an incentive to work effectively together and enable Parliament to hold them to account. The act also made a series of changes to the cooperation arrangements between the CMA and regulators, such as the establishment of the UK Competition Network as a forum for multilateral engagement between the relevant authorities.
The review is timely
10 years since the Enterprise and Regulatory Reform Act, the CMA considers it is an opportune moment to evaluate the overall operation and performance of concurrency, as well as its objectives. It is also timely given ongoing cost of living pressures, which emphasises the role of competition in helping to keep prices down. The CMA is mindful that its review will be carried out while the Government conducts an assessment of economic regulation in the energy, water and telecoms sectors, but underlines that it is focused squarely on the concurrent competition powers, rather than the UK’s broader policy landscape. The consultation will remain open until 20 October, with the CMA looking to set out its conclusions in Spring 2024.
