House of Lords European Union Committee
Brexit: competition and State aid

12th Report of Session 2017-19 - published 2 February 2018 - HL Paper 67

Contents

Summary

Chapter 1: Introduction

Brexit: competition and State aid

The European Union Committee’s work

This inquiry

Chapter 2: The current competition landscape

EU competence in competition and State aid

Antitrust

Merger control

State aid

Jurisdiction

The UK’s competition regime

Issues with the current system

State aid

Consumer concerns

Conclusions

Chapter 3: Short-term implications of Brexit

Antitrust

The relationship between UK and EU antitrust law

Block exemptions

Private actions and the role of UK legal services

Merger control

Loss of the ‘one stop shop’

The Government’s position

Conclusions

Chapter 4: Transitional arrangements

Transitional issues

Cases ‘live’ at the point of Brexit

Cases relating to pre-Brexit activities

The status and enforcement of pre-Brexit commitments, remedies and decisions

Possible solutions

Antitrust and merger control

State aid

The importance of early clarity

Antitrust and merger control

State aid

UK and EU position papers

Box 1: Extracts from the EU’s position paper on Ongoing Union judicial and administrative proceedings

Box 2: Extracts from the UK’s position paper on Ongoing Union judicial and administrative proceedings

The Government’s position

Conclusions

Chapter 5: Future UK policy: antitrust and merger control

The advantages of maintaining consistency with the EU

Opportunities for change

Antitrust

Merger control

Future UK-EU cooperation on competition matters

Formal bilateral arrangements

Precedents for EU competition cooperation agreements with third countries

Informal cooperation

The Government’s position

Conclusions

Chapter 6: Future UK policy: State aid

The impact of EU State aid rules in the UK

Figure 1: Total State aid expenditure as % of GDP in 2015, less railways

State aid and the future UK-EU trade relationship

Precedents for State aid control in EU trade agreements with third countries

State aid under WTO rules

Devolution implications

Options for UK State aid control

The need for a domestic State aid authority

The EEA model

Administration of the future State aid regime

The Government’s position

Conclusions

Chapter 7: Determining the UK’s future institutional framework

Resource implications for the CMA and the CAT

Possible solutions

Future institutional arrangements

The Trade Remedies Authority

Box 3: Extract from the Trade Bill relating to the role of the Trade Remedies Authority (TRA)

Other stakeholders

The global competition community

The Government’s position

Conclusions

Summary of conclusions and recommendations

Appendix 1: List of Members and declarations of interest

Appendix 2: List of witnesses

Appendix 3: Call for evidence

Appendix 4: Glossary

Evidence is published online at http://www.parliament.uk/brexit-competition-inquiry and available for inspection at the Parliamentary Archives (020 7219 3074).

Q in footnotes refers to a question in oral evidence.





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