§ Mr. Nealeasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what steps he is taking to curb anti-competitive practices by British Telecom and ensure fair competition, particularly in the above 100 line PABX market; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. ButcherThe chairman of British Telecom is fully aware of British Telecom's obligations, under the Competition Act 1980, to trade fairly and, under the British Telecommunications Act 1981, to avoid undue discrimination. He has assured me that his local sales staff have been reminded of their obligations and have been given firm instructions to observe them.
Following the entry into force of the Telecommunications Act 1984, British Telecom's trading environment will be further bound by the licence to be granted to it under that Act. The Government intend this licence to contain specific conditions against unfair trading practices. The details of these and other licence conditions are still under consideration; the general lines of the Government's intentions can be seen in conditions 16, 17, 18, 20 and 35 of the draft licence placed before the House in October.