Richard Bruton (Dublin North Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

The Bill provides that the new Competition and Consumer Protection Commission will, under section 30, submit an annual report to the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation who will lay it before the Houses of the Oireachtas. It is not normal for such reports to contain recommendations. However, the Bill also provides in section 8, as part of the functions of the new commission, for it to undertake studies or analysis, including at the request of the Minister under subsection (4). This is based on existing legislation - the Competition Act 2002 and the Consumer Protection Act 2007. In this context, the commission will be able to make recommendations to the Government and Ministers, etc.

On the Competition Act 2002, the Competition Authority may report on how competition is working in different sectors and has done so on many occasions. It has made recommendations to improve how competition works in these sectors. Such recommendations are addressed to the relevant Minister, public body or representative body, as appropriate. While the new commission may be expert in the area of competition and consumer protection, it will not have the wider public policy role of Departments. Ministers and Departments must consider issues from more than one policy perspective and weigh competing and conflicting policies against each other. A single focus of an expert body does not typically allow such wider considerations to enter its deliberations. In practice, the Government has agreed that the relevant Minister responsible for the area under the Competition Authority must report to the Government within nine months on his or her reaction and the Government notes the issue or takes a decision on it. It is expected that the same will apply to reports of the new commission. I am, therefore, not in a position to accept the amendment.