§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade by what means and with what objectives the retail petrol industry is monitored by the Director General of Fair Trading; and if she will make a statement. [31703]
§ Mr. Nigel Griffiths[holding answer 2 March 1998]: The Director General of Fair Trading has been carrying out a major review of the petrol market in the UK to examine the effects of changes in the market's structure since the 1990 Monopolies and Mergers Commission report on the supply of petrol.
Under section 2 of the Fair Trading Act 1973, the Director General of Fair Trading has a duty to review commercial activities in the United Kingdom. The purpose of this is to help him detect monopoly situations 809W and anti-competitive practices; the Director General can, if appropriate, refer these to the Monopolies and Mergers Commission for investigation.
In relation to petrol, the Office of Fair Trading meets representatives of the industry from time to time to keep track of the competitive processes within it. The Office also collects information about the market on a regular basis and investigates complaints about alleged anti-competitive behaviour.
§ Mr. BoswellTo ask the President of the Board of Trade if she will make a statement on recent changes in the degree of competition(a) nationally and (b) locally in the retail petrol industry. [31704]
§ Mr. Nigel Griffiths[holding answer 2 March 1998]: The Director General of Fair Trading confirmed on 10 June 1997 that he was reviewing the wholesale and retail petrol market in the United Kingdom. I understand he expects to publish the findings shortly.