CMA consultation on Draft guidance on the application of the Chapter I prohibition in the Competition Act 1998 to environmental sustainability agreements - Which? response

We agree that environmental sustainability is a major public concern - three-quarters of UK consumers have told us that they are somewhat or very concerned about climate change - and it is important that competition law does not inhibit the achievement of sustainability goals. However, it is also crucial that in seeking to ensure this does not happen, we do not allow a harmful weakening of competition law that creates detriment for consumers.

We believe the CMA has largely managed to strike the right balance between promoting beneficial sustainability agreements and not allowing such agreements to undermine competition and harm consumers. We agree with the CMA’s fundamental decisions on the scope of the guidance and the decision to create a more permissive regime for climate change agreements only.

Our response, including recommendations, to specific parts of the guidance is set out below.