Competition Law – Access to Law

Civil Aviation Authority

The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the UK. Its functions include economic regulation, safety regulation, consumer protection, and the regulation of airports, air traffic services, airlines, tour operators and air travel organisers. In relation to airport operation services and the supply of air traffic services it also exercises competition powers concurrently with the Competition and Markets Authority. The site’s Aviation Legislation section may be found via Our Work > Publications > Search for a Publication > Publication Categories. It includes the full text of the loose-leaf publication CAP 393: Air Navigation: the Order and the Regulations, which sets out the provisions of the Air Navigation Order (both the 2009 and the 2016 versions) as amended and regulations made thereunder.

Competition & Markets Authority

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is a non-ministerial UK government department which is responsible for promoting business competition and preventing and reducing anti-competitive activities. It became fully operational on 1 April 2014, when it took over many of the functions of the Competition Commission and the Office of Fair Trading. Information here on the GOV.UK web site includes extensive guidance on competition law and consumer protection law.

Competition Appeal Tribunal

The Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) hears and decides appeals and other applications or claims involving competition or economic regulatory issues. It was created by the Enterprise Act 2002 and replaced the former Competition Commission Appeal Tribunal. Its jurisdiction extends to the whole of the United Kingdom. Information and guidance on appeals to the Tribunal includes the text of the Tribunal’s rules and a Guide to Proceedings. There are summaries and full documentation (judgments, transcripts, orders, etc) relating to all cases 2001 onwards.

Competition Bulletin

Competition Bulletin is a blog on EU and UK competition law produced by a group of barristers at Blackstone Chambers in London. The archive of blog posts extends back to April 2012.

Competition Commission

The Competition Commission was an independent body responsible for investigating mergers, market shares and conditions, and the regulation of the major regulated industries, from 1 April 1999 (when it replaced the Monopolies and Mergers Commission) until 1 April 2014, when it was abolished and replaced by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). This page of the GOV.UK site provides a link to the archived Competition Commission web site within the UK Government Web Archive, which includes reports of market investigations, merger inquiries, regulatory references and appeals, and a directory of completed inquiries, from 2003 to 2014. Earlier inquiry reports extending back to 1950 of the Competition Commission’s several predecessor bodies are also accessible via further links within the archived site.

Competition Law Review

Competition Law Review is a refereed online journal published twice a year from 2004 onwards by the Competition Law Scholars Forum (CLaSF), an organisation which aims to promote competition law scholarship in the UK, member states of the EU, and states which may accede to the EU. All issues to date are available to download free of charge.

Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) was formed on 14 July 2016 from a merger of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) and the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). Its responsibilities include business, industrial strategy, science, innovation, energy and climate change. This section of the GOV.UK web site provides information on its activities, policies, publications and announcements.

European Commission: Competition

This section of the European Commission’s web site is devoted to competition law and policy. It provides links to a wide range of documents, including relevant Official Journal content, legislation and case law. Publications include Competition Weekly e-News and Competition Policy Brief, the latter providing frequent updates on policy issues and key cases.

Financial Conduct Authority

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) regulates the financial services industry in the UK. It was established on 1 April 2013 as one of the successors to the Financial Services Authority (FSA), and has since 1 April 2015 had concurrent competition powers in relation to financial services alongside the Competition and Markets Authority. The Financial Services Register, a register of all the firms, individuals and other bodies regulated by the FSA, is accessible online. The FCA Handbook of rules and related guidance are accessible via a link to the separate FCA Handbook site.

NHS Improvement

NHS Improvement (NHSI) is the operational name of an umbrella organisation, created on 1 April 2016, which brings together various bodies involved in aspects of healthcare oversight and regulation. Responsibilities include overseeing foundation trusts and NHS trusts, protecting and promoting the interests of patients, and the exercise of concurrent powers alongside the Competition and Markets Authority to enforce competition law in respect of the provision of healthcare services in England. The web site includes details of NHSI’s role, corporate publications and a Resources section, and provides links to the legacy web sites of Monitor and the other bodies which make up NHSI.

Ofcom

Ofcom (the Office of Communications) is the independent regulator and competition authority for the media and communications industries in the UK. It was created in December 2003 from a merger of the Broadcasting Standards Commission, the Independent Television Commission, Oftel, the Radio Authority and the Radio Communications Agency. It has also been responsible for the regulation since 1 October 2011, of the UK’s postal services, and since 3 April 2017 of the BBC. Information and documents on the site include consultations, codes of practice, guidance, reports, and selected material from the former sites of the defunct “legacy regulators”. A Competition and Consumer Enforcement Bulletin may be found within “About Ofcom”, “News and updates”.

Office of Fair Trading

The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) was a non-ministerial government department which was responsible for promoting and protecting consumer interests in the UK and ensuring that businesses were fair and competitive. The OFT was abolished on 1 April 2014 and its work and responsibilities transferred to various bodies including the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) and the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). This page on the GOV.UK site includes a link to the archived OFT web site within the UK Government Web Archive.

Office of Rail and Road

The Office of Rail and Road (ORR – formerly the Office of Rail Regulation) is the independent regulator of Britain’s railway industry and monitor of Highways England (formerly the Highways Agency). Like several other economic regulators it exercises, concurrently with the Competition and Markets Authority, competition and consumer powers within its sector. Its site has a wide range of information and documents, and links to railway-related legislation.

Ofgem

Ofgem (the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets) regulates Great Britain’s gas and electricity markets. Like several other industry regulators it also exercises, concurrently with the Competition and Markets Authority, competition and consumer powers within its sector. The site has extensive information on Ofgem’s role and activities but no longer links to legislation.

Ofwat

Ofwat (the Water Services Regulation Authority) is the economic regulator of the water and sewerage industry in England and Wales. It also plays a role under the Competition Act 1998 in promoting competition within its sector. The extensive range of publications available on the site includes guidance leaflets, codes of practice, consultation papers, and its annual reports to Parliament.

Payment Systems Regulator

The Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is a subsidiary of the Financial Conduct Authority which operates as the independent economic regulator of the payment systems industry in the UK. It has concurrent competition powers alongside the Competition and Markets Authority and became fully operational on 1 April 2015. Publications on the PSR’s web site include consultations, policy statements, annual plans and reports.

Utility Regulator

The Utility Regulator is the informal name of the Northern Ireland Authority for Utility Regulation (NIAUR), which regulates the electricity, gas, water and sewerage industries in Northern Ireland. Like its counterpart authorities in Great Britain, Ofgem and Ofwat, NIAUR also exercises powers within its sector, concurrently with the Competition and Markets Authority, under the Competition Act 1998. Publications on the site include consultation papers 2002 onwards and press releases 1997 onwards.