The Belgian government has submitted to Parliament a bill introducing significant amendments to the Competition Act. The amended Competition Act will be included in the new Code of Business and Economic Law (Wetboek van economisch recht/Code de droit économique).
Amongst other things, the bill reforms the Belgian Competition Authority. The objectives of the proposed reform are twofold: on the one hand, to simplify the Competition Authority's structure and, on the other hand, to introduce faster and more efficient procedures. For instance, the bill provides for a settlement procedure for competition law violations and the possibility to appeal investigative measures. It also allows the Competition Authority to impose administrative fines on natural persons. Finally, the bill grants new powers to the Competition Authority in relation to price intervention.
