§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what steps she is taking to ensure that the freedom of the Post Office to enter into domestic joint ventures does not give rise to unfair competition with other service providers. [38988]
§ Mr. Ian McCartney[holding answer 20 April 1998]: The Post Office is subject to national and European competition rules. In addition, the guidelines for Post Office domestic joint ventures, set by the Government annexed to the response to the Trade and Industry Select Committee and published by the Committee as its fifth special report, are intended to safeguard against the possibility of unfair competition. The guidelines require, inter alia, that any proposed venture should satisfy normal commercial criteria, that its prices should at least fully meet long-term marginal costs (including a full contribution to overheads), that it should treat the element of the price which represents the charge for access to the monopoly infrastructure in a transparent way, and comply with state aids rules.