I propose to take Questions Nos. 368 to 372, inclusive, and 374 together.
The Competition Authority is an independent statutory body which was established under the Competition Act 1991 and continued under the Competition Act 2002. I have no role in relation to the day-to-day activities of the authority regarding the way in which it discharges its statutory functions nor do I have any detailed information regarding every case of competition law enforcement in which the authority becomes involved. I am aware, however, that the authority is currently involved in significant legal proceedings regarding alleged breaches of competition law but it would be inappropriate for me to comment further on any such current matter.
The authority has also advised me that while it would try to facilitate anyone with requests for statistical data, information in relation to its enforcement activities has been provided routinely since 1991 in its annual reports.
The authority is required by the Competition Act 2002 to report to the Oireachtas in a number of ways. For example, section 42 of the Act requires it to publish an annual report by the end of February each year detailing its activities in the previous year and, prior to publication, the authority is required to have laid a copy of its annual report before each House of the Oireachtas.
Section 38 of the Act sets out the functions and accountability of the chairperson which can require him to give evidence before the Committee of Public Accounts and any other committee of the Oireachtas whose business relates to examination of competition policy.
The chairperson appeared before the Committee of Public Accounts in July 2004 and has given evidence to the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Enterprise and Small Business on a number of occasions, most recently in September 2005. The records of all of these meetings are freely available.
The authority assures me that it would be more than happy to provide Deputies with any further assistance required in this matter. However, I draw attention to the authority's 2004 annual report in which it stated that the vast majority of complaints made to it do not reveal a breach of competition law or are resolved at an early stage without the need for legal action.
I also point out that because of the complexities involved in the enforcement of competition law, proceedings often prove lengthy.