{"id":64770,"date":"2015-11-30T11:04:28","date_gmt":"2015-11-30T11:04:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?guid=ca5c0bef30650a59ba63b98a45d66c3c"},"modified":"2015-11-30T11:04:28","modified_gmt":"2015-11-30T11:04:28","slug":"press-release-cma-welcomes-competition-plan","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mostafa.openonline.co.uk\/?p=64770","title":{"rendered":"Press release: CMA welcomes competition plan"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A better deal: boosting competition to bring down bills for families and firms<\/a> – sets out the steps the government will take to promote open and competitive markets, reaffirming its commitment to strong competition which improves productivity by encouraging innovation and efficiency. It identifies competition as one key aspect of the government\u2019s broader plan to improving productivity in the UK.<\/p>\n

Alongside the plan, the latest strategic steer to the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA<\/abbr>) is to be published. This is a ministerial statement outlining the government\u2019s aspirations for the CMA<\/abbr> during this Parliament, and provides a clear statement of how the government sees competition supporting its wider objectives for the economy. <\/p>\n

The CMA<\/abbr> today announced its intention, as confirmed in the plan, to undertake an analysis of price comparison websites during 2016. Such websites have delivered significant benefits to consumers, and the CMA<\/abbr> wants to ensure they are meeting their full potential in allowing consumers to compare and switch products. Among the issues considered will be whether there is a case for a common accreditation framework, whether lack of access to free, readily-available tariff data is a barrier for new and innovative price comparison websites, and whether price comparison websites in specific sectors should be subject to more rigorous propriety and transparency standards.<\/p>\n

The government is also consulting on the introduction of civil fining powers for breaches of consumer protection laws, as part of a wider call for evidence on how to improve engagement with terms and conditions and ensure the terms that bind consumers are fair in practice.<\/p>\n

The plan also states the government\u2019s intention to take action on some of the outstanding policy recommendations made by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT<\/abbr>) (one of the CMA<\/abbr>\u2019s predecessor organisations) following previous studies into improving competition in dentistry<\/a>, school uniforms<\/a> and pharmacies<\/a>. <\/p>\n

The plan states that: <\/p>\n