Mary Coughlan (Donegal South West, Fianna Fail)
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I understand the Deputy is referring to pricing arrangements agreed between parties in a contractual business relationship. In general, contact law, enforceable in the courts, governs the terms and conditions entered into by contracting parties.

In so far as competition law has an effect on business relationships, this is in the form of prohibition of certain anti-competitive practices such as price-fixing, applying dissimilar conditions to equivalent transactions with other trading parties thereby placing them at a competitive disadvantage, making the conclusion of contracts subject to acceptance by the other party of supplementary obligations which by their nature or according to commercial usage have no connections with the subject of such contracts, abusing a dominant position, requesting "hello" money and imposing resale price maintenance.

The Competition Authority is the statutory independent body responsible for enforcing competition law in the State. Section 29(3) of the Competition Act 2002 provides that the Authority is independent in the performance of its functions. Under section 30(1)(b) of that Act, the Competition Authority is responsible for investigating any breach of the Act. As investigations and enforcement matters generally are part of the day-to-day operational work of the Authority, I have no direct function in the matter.

That being said, if the Deputy has any evidence of such anti-competitive practices I would urge him to submit it to the Competition Authority for investigation and any action it may consider appropriate.