The UK government has today published the final version of its strategic steer to the CMA.
Helpfully, the Department for Business and Trade has also published a short note setting out the differences between the draft and final versions of the steer, so we can see what impact the consultation had.
There aren’t many differences between the two versions but amongst them are two additional references to the CMA’s independent decision-making, including under the new digital markets regime.
My sense is that ministers want to draw a distinction between the CMA’s overall policy direction (where they think the government has a legitimate interest and where they want the strategic steer to have more of an impact on the CMA than it did in the past) and the CMA’s decision-making on its individual cases (where they want to protect the organisation’s independence). The more comfortable ministers have become that the CMA’s overall policy direction is not out of line with the government’s priorities, the more confident they are in defending its independent decision-making on cases.
This comes through in the press release accompanying the new strategic steer, where the Chancellor, Rachel Reeves, and the Business Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, each emphasise the importance of competition and competitive markets in driving growth; the positive steps the CMA has already taken to give more clarity and confidence to businesses about its work; and the government’s support for the CMA’s independence in carrying out its work.
It is also in line with the speech by competition minister Justin Madders at the ICN last week where he put a strong emphasis on the importance of the CMA’s independent decision-making.
Time will obviously tell how this plays out but after a turbulent period this is a positive step.
