§ Mr. Fletcherasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if, in view of the decision not to refer the second Guinness bid for Distillers to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and the opportunity this opens for bidding companies to negotiate with the Office of Fair Trading the divestment of parts of its business or make other arrangements to avoid a reference to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission, he will make a statement about the implications of this decision on competition policy and the future conduct of the competition authorities in dealing with mergers.
§ Mr. HowardI shall reply to my hon. Friend as soon as possible.