HC Deb 14 February 1968 vol 758 cc361-2W
Mr. Barnett

asked the President of the Board of Trade what proposals he has tot amending the Restrictive Trades Practices Act; and when the amending legislation will be introduced.

Mr. Crosland:

I hope to introduce a Bill during the present session broadly on the lines announced by my predecessor on the 28th February and 28th July last year.

I propose to include a provision which would enable me in appropriate cases to grant temporary exemption from regis- tration under the 1956 Act to agreements which are positively beneficial to the national economy. My proposals will also include an additional defence for agreements which do not materially restrict competition, and the widening of the Board of Trade's powers in relation to insignificant agreements.

In order to strengthen the legislation, I propose to seek power by Order to make information agreements registrable. I shall not proceed with the other main provision, designed to strengthen the legislation, which would have made it unlawful to enter into a registrable restrictive agreement without the leave of the Restrictive Practices Court. Instead I propose to include a simpler provision which would make any registrable restrictive agreement unlawful if it came into operation before registration, or if it were not registered within three months of its making, whichever was the earlier. Civil remedies for damages would be available to persons harmed by such an unlawful agreement.

I also propose to make two additions to the proposals announced by my predecessor. First, in order to assist the operation of the Government's prices and incomes policy, I shall seek powers comparable with those contained in Section 24 of the Prices and Incomes Act to enable the Government to exempt from registration price agreements made at the Government's request in support of the prices policy. Secondly, I shall propose an extension of the powers to take action against restrictive trade practices where this is found necessary under the Stockholm Convention and the Anglo-Irish Free Trade Area Agreement.