The CMA is today publishing advice for businesses thinking of, or already operating, joint ventures to help them comply with competition law. This follows a recent case where two businesses in a joint venture were fined £1.7 million by the CMA for agreeing to share the market under the cover of a joint venture agreement.

The CMA’s short guide on Joint Ventures and Competition Law: do’s and don’ts is for businesses that are already in, or are considering entering into, joint ventures, alliances or other forms of collaboration with another business.

The CMA’s advice urges competing businesses to make sure they collaborate legally, check they are compliant with competition law from the outset of agreements and to keep arrangements under regular review to help ensure they remain compliant. In addition to publishing the advice, the CMA is also writing directly to over one thousand regional commercial law firms to ask them to share the advice with their clients.

Ann Pope, CMA Senior Director, Antitrust, said:

At the CMA we support collaboration between competitors that leads to innovation and directly benefits customers but there can be a fine line between collaborating and colluding. Certain forms of collaboration between competitors are illegal under competition law and businesses can face large fines if they break the law.

Competing businesses setting up a joint venture should be clear about how collaborating will directly benefit customers, and that the benefit of joining forces couldn’t equally be achieved by acting alone but in competition with each other.

Labelling a collaboration as a ‘joint venture’ will not protect businesses from the scrutiny of competition law. Our new advice provides pointers on what is and isn’t allowed when operating a new or existing joint venture – I urge businesses and legal advisors alike to read and share it.

Giving to charity is a longstanding and important tradition, and the British public are generous when it comes to supporting charitable causes.

Sadly, that generosity can sometimes be undermined by those who seek to intercept charitable funds for their own gain.

We want to help donors know how to spot a genuine registered charity.

By making simple checks part of the routine of donating, we can all become smarter and more conscious donors, and help promote public trust in the sector as a whole.

Safer giving video

Advice for the public

Do not be put off supporting the important work of charities, but make sure you are safely giving to genuine charity collectors by following our steps to safer giving:

• before giving, check the charity’s name and registration number on our register
• be more cautious about people collecting for general charitable causes, such as ‘it’s for local sick children’- make more enquiries about what exactly the money would be used for and by who –
• when approached by collectors, check whether they are wearing a proper ID badge and that any collection tin is sealed and that it is not damaged
• if in doubt, ask the collector for more information – a genuine fundraiser should be happy to answer questions and explain more about the work of the charity
• check a collector has a license to fundraise with the local authority or has the consent of the private site owner
• check that the charity follows the Fundraising Regulator’s guidance and Code of Fundraising Practice
• carefully review collection bags for clothing and household goods to find out whether they are from a genuine charity
• never feel under pressure by a fundraiser into making a donation immediately

Safer giving online donation tips

Apply the same checks online as you would in person, but also:

• be wary of unsolicited emails from charities you have never heard of or have no association with
• don’t click on links contained in emails – instead search online for your chosen charity to check you have the right web address and donate directly to them
• check there is a padlock symbol in the URL bar and that the web address starts with ‘https’
• make sure the charity is genuine before giving any financial information and never share your pin number

After making these checks, if you think that a collection or appeal is not legitimate, report it to the police; and if you think the collection is fraudulent report it to Action Fraud through their website or call them on 0300 123 2040.

• If you think a collector does not have a licence – report it to the relevant Local Authority Licensing Team or the Metropolitan Police (if in Greater London). Also let the charity and Action Fraud know if you can
• If in any doubt, contact your favourite charity directly to find out how to make a donation

Platform 6 at Bushey station (Photo by Sunil060902 on Wikimedia Commons. Used under Creative Commons)

At around 21:24 hrs on 26 March 2018, a passenger attempting to board a train at Bushey station became trapped in a closing door. The train started and moved around 27 metres before being stopped. The passenger remained upright but sustained a minor injury to their arm.

We have undertaken a preliminary examination into the circumstances surrounding this incident. Having assessed the evidence which has been gathered to date, we have decided to publish a safety digest.

The safety digest will be made available on our website in the next few weeks.

Published 12 April 2018