§ 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 their 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. Howard[pursuant to his reply, 25 March 1986]: It is not the practice of the director general or Ministers to negotiate over references. But the Office of Fair Trading is always willing to discuss at an early stage any proposals which companies may have in mind, and to offer guidance as to whether they would be likely to be referred.
The decision not to refer the second Guinness proposal was entirely consistent with our policy of making references primarily on grounds of competition.