Micheál Martin (Cork South Central, Fianna Fail)

It is best practice on the part of enforcement agencies to cultivate complaints and make it clear, to inspire confidence, that complaints will be pursued vigorously. This is clearly the intention behind the amendment. However, I am of the view that a mandatory requirement on the Competition Authority of this kind is unsuitable for inclusion in legislation. It may be inappropriate, counterproductive and might cause a disclosure of unauthorised information or cause jeopardy to an ongoing investigation. In criminal investigations, for example, it would not be good practice to keep the complainant apprised of the status of the investigation beyond letting him or her know that the matter is being pursued. This is in keeping with the notion that a person is innocent until proven guilty.

This amendment relates to an amendment to the Competition Authority Act, even though we are dealing with the Consumer Protection Bill. As a general principle, I do not favour amending other Acts through this legislation.

On the specifics of the Senator's amendment, the enforcement agencies must be at pains to make certain that specific details about a criminal investigation are kept confidential. While two recent convictions were obtained by the Competition Authority, if it had been keeping people apprised of the information in regard to them that could have jeopardised the success of those convictions.

It seems unwise to set up some expectation in legislation that might suggest some requirement to share anything with a complainant beyond the fact that the matter is under investigation. Moreover, the authority, in common with other enforcement agencies, is required to take an investigation in whatever direction is in the interests of enforcement of the law, which might at some point diverge from the interests of a complainant who had brought the matter to its attention.

With regard to paragraph (b) of the proposed amendment, the Minister already has the power under section 30(2) of the Competition Act 2002 to request the authority to carry out studies and analysis and to specify deadlines within which such studies and analysis must be completed. For the information of the Senator, section 30(2) of the Competition Act 2002 states:

The Minister may request the Authority to carry out a study or analysis of any practice or method of competition affecting the supply and distribution of goods or the provision of services or any other matter relating to competition and submit a report to the Minister in relation to the study or analysis; the Authority shall comply with such a request within such period as the Minister may specify in the request.

Having said that, I repeat my earlier comment to the Senator regarding a review of the operation of the 2002 Competition Act on which my Department will embark during the current year. I will request again that the Senator's proposal be borne in mind in the context of that review. In so far as the suggested change might be warranted, it would be preferable to include it as part of that comprehensive review rather than to amend the 2002 Act piecemeal through this legislation.

The best route for the Deputy to take in terms of amendments to the Competition Act would be to make a submission, embracing some of the amendments he tabled to this Bill, to the Department for consideration as part of that review. That would be a better way to deal with this proposal and it might also be useful from our point of view. I want to keep the Consumer Protection Act pure in so far as I can.