§ Lord Brougham and Vauxasked Her Majesty's Government:
What action they will take to stop companies who make bids which are referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission buying further shares in the market.
§ Lord Young of GraffhamI have already made clear that in future cases, where mergers are referred to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and where in the past I would have sought undertakings regarding further share purchases, voting or other matters, I propose to safeguard the conduct of the inquiry by making an appropriate order to come into effect when the reference is announced.
This however entails making a new order on each occasion. As the prohibition on further purchases of shares by the bidder is to apply in all appropriate cases, it is proposed to put the prohibition on a permanent footing. It is therefore our intention to include such a prohibition among the provisions relating to mergers in the forthcoming companies legislation.
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