|
In January 2006, the OECD published a report reviewing competition law and policy in the European Union. The report was prepared by the Secretariat of the OECD and formed the basis for a peer review examination of the European Commission in the OECD Competition Committee on 19 October 2005.
This report, prepared by the Secretariat of the OECD, was the basis for a peer
review examination of the European Commission in the OECD Competition
Committee on 19 October 2005. Competition policy played a central role in the
development of the European Union and its institutions. It has achieved a quasi-constitutional
status, distinctively based on the direct application of law to economic actors rather than on administrative exercise of policy discretion or on political or interest-group bargaining.
Competition law in the European Union is in transition, as policies about antitrust, mergers and State aids are increasingly based on marketcentred economic considerations. Modernisation of concepts sets out basic analysis in an administrable format while making its economic underpinnings more explicit. By eliminating notification and prior approval while sharing enforcement responsibility with national agencies, the European Commission seeks to redirect
resources so that DG Comp can concentrate on complex, Community-wide issues. A high priority is to clarify the relationships among the leniency programmes of the Community and the national agencies. In adopting an economic approach to dominance, liability should depend upon effects that harm competition; in appropriate cases, assessing the scope for recoupment should be an integral part of such an approach. DG Comp has added economic expertise and strengthened quality controls; nonetheless, a further increase in economic analysis capacity is called for.
With projects to liberalise industries regulated by Member states well under way, the
Commission’s new program for impact analysis of EU legislative proposals is turning attention to avoiding unnecessary and disproportionate restrictions on competition in the legislation of the EU.
|
