§ Lord Kennetasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they will refer Consortium Developments plc to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission on the grounds that it exists to allocate building land in the South East among all the major housebuilders in the country, and to co-ordinate their flow of work, and if not, why not.
§ The Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (Lord Young of Graffham)No, my Lords. Under the United Kingdom competition legislation it is the Director General of Fair Trading who is responsible for keeping competition in industry and commerce under review. He has discretionary powers to refer monopolies and anti-competitive practices to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission for investigation. I understand that as yet Consortium Developments have not been successful in acquiring land for development and that there is therefore no course of conduct or situations for investigation under the competition legislation. If the noble Lord has any information to the contrary, he should bring it to the attention of the director general.