I propose to take Questions Nos. 289 and 290 together.
Action point 1.32 of the Action Plan for Jobs commits to the identification of any sheltered areas of the economy where competition is restricted and the commissioning of studies on such areas where appropriate. In order to meet the Q 1 commitment to identify sheltered areas of the economy where competition is restricted the Competition Authority undertook an exercise to identify any such sheltered areas.
Having identified an initial range of areas of the economy that are likely to be sheltered in some way from competition, the Competition Authority applied its prioritisation principles to identify those that would potentially benefit the most from a market study. The five prioritisation principles are: Significance of the issue or effect of the conduct in question; Impact of the Competition Authority's action; Wider economic significance of the market involved; Strategic significance and Risks, resources and costs.
A detailed explanation of each of these prioritisation principles and how they are applied is outlined in the Competition Authority's Prioritisation Principles booklet which can be found on its website at http://www.tca.ie/images/uploaded/documents/Prioritisation%20booklet.pdf .
The Authority is now engaged in a detailed scoping exercise to enable an informed decision to be taken on which sheltered area will be subjected to an in-depth study.