Rail Regulator publishes draft Competition Act guidelines for the railway industry
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10 February 2000
Rail Regulator publishes draft Competition Act guidelines for the railway industryThe Rail Regulator, Tom Winsor, has today issued draft guidelines setting out how the Competition Act 1998 will be applied in the railway industry. From 1 March 2000, the Act will allow action to be taken against companies that abuse a dominant position or enter into anti-competitive agreements, while giving the Regulator stronger powers of investigation and the ability to impose financial penalties of up to 10% of a companys UK turnover. The Rail Regulator will enforce the Competition Act concurrently with the Director General of fair Trading. Commenting on the draft guidelines, Tom Winsor said: "The Competition Act gives me the power to ensure thatthere is an open and level playing field across the industry, including thoseparts of the industry that are currently unregulated, such as the rolling stockleasing companies. Compliance with the Competition Act must be an importantpriority for all companies in the railway industry. I shall expect companies toset transparent programmes in place to monitor compliance, and my Office willactively pursue potential breaches of the Competition Act." The final version of the Competition Act guidelines will be published following a consultation period which ends on 31 March 2000.  
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