§ Mr. Murphyasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry whether the undertakings given following the Monopolies and Mergers Commission report on the supply of asbestos and asbestos products in 1973 have been reviewed.
§ Mr. FletcherYes. My right hon. Friend has decided, in accordance with the advice of the Director General of Fair Trading, to release Turner and Newall plc from the last remaining undertaking given following the 1973 Monopolies and Mergers Commission report.
The commission found a number of Turner and Newall's policies and practices in the field of asbestos products to be against the public interest, and Turner and Newall gave four undertakings to the Secretary of State to remedy the detriments indentified by the commission. The company discharged its commitments under three of these undertakings some time ago and the only one remaining in force was an undertaking not to acquire any company which is a competitor or customer of Turner and Newall in asbestos products without the consent of the Secretary of State. The Director General of Fair Trading recently reviewed this undertaking in accordance with his responsibilities under the Fair Trading Act and recommended that Turner and Newall should be released from it.
The Director General reached his view in the light of changes in the market, including the declining importance of asbestos and the increasing number of substitutes from asbestos products, and of Turner and Newall's progress in achieving divestment of its asbestos mining interests. He commented that future substantial acquisitions by Turner and Newall could be scrutinised in accordance with the merger provisions of the Fair Trading Act.
My right hon. Friend accepted the Director General's recommendation and his advice that any future acquisition which resulted in a market share of 25 per cent. or more for Turner and Newall in the field of asbestos products should be looked at particularly closely.