Introduction
On May 20, 2025, the European Commission (the Commission)
published the proposed text, which it has adopted, of the Agreement
between the European Union and the United Kingdom regarding
cooperation in the application of their competition laws. This
agreement is a critical supplement to the Trade and Cooperation
Agreement (TCA) and the first standalone legal instrument designed
to re-establish structured dialogue between UK and EU competition
authorities. It should be welcomed by businesses as a first step
towards better convergence between the UK and the EU in competition
policy and enforcement.
It is also worth noting that the UK only has comparable
cooperation arrangements (in the form of MOUs) with the US, Canada,
Australia, and New Zealand.