Lords committee hears from Competition and Markets Authority Chair

The House of Lords Industry and Regulators Committee will hear from Chair of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), Marcus Bokkerink as it continues its inquiry into UK regulators. Members will also hear from Dame Patricia Hodgson, Deputy Chair of Policy Exchange and former Chair of Ofcom, and Marcial Boo, Chair of the Institute of Regulation.

The session will run from 10.30am on Wednesday 29 November and can be followed live on Parliament TV or in person in Committee Room 3, Palace of Westminster.

At 10:30, the Committee will hear from:

• Marcial Boo, Chair, Institute of Regulation
• Dame Patricia Hodgson, Deputy Chair of Policy Exchange and former Chair of Ofcom

Possible questions include:

• have the UK’s regulators been given clear, consistent and discrete objectives?
• to what extent are regulators being expected to address political or distributional decisions?
• is there a case for a new independent body to help Parliament scrutinise the work and performance of regulators?
• to what extent is a regulator’s independence affected by whether it depends on the Government for its resources?

At 11:30, the Committee will hear from:

• Marcus Bokkerink, Chair, Competition and Markets Authority (CMA)

Possible questions include:

• do you feel that the CMA has been given a clear and consistent job to do by the Government and Parliament?
• how does being funded by the Treasury impact on the CMA’s ability to act independently of the Government?
• how integrated is the consumer view within the CMA’s processes, or are they an individual stakeholder among many to be engaged with?

The committee is encouraging interested individuals and organisations to submit evidence to the inquiry until Friday 1 December.