United Kingdom Competition Authority Announces Support For Climate Change Agreements Among Competitors

In a recent speech to the Scottish Competition Forum, Sarah Cardell, newly installed Chief Executive of the UK's Competition Markets Authority (CMA), laid out her vision for analyzing agreements among competitors that foster climate change goals. Simultaneously, the CMA issued Draft Guidance on Horizontal Agreements that more formally sets out the CMA's policy in this area.

This announcement is a forceful declaration that competition enforcers have an important policy role to play in facilitating the world economy's move toward a more sustainable future. According to Ms. Cardell, "[t]here can be few, if any, bigger challenges facing our economy and our society than climate change. That's why, in our new strategy, we have prioritised action to accelerate the UK's transition to a net zero economy. Now, some might question whether environmental sustainability is an appropriate priority for a competition authority. I respectfully disagree."