Oligopolistic way of organizing our society is just not cutting it any more

June 1, 2022 Enterprise, FinTech and Alternative Finance, Fintech Opinions, Leadership, Productivity, Competition, Human Capital, Health, Stories, Voices No comments

FP | Jake Edmiston | May 27, 2022

Matthew Boswell, Commissioner Competition Bureau

To beat back the worst inflation in decades, Canada needs to modernize its competition laws and chase down companies that collude to jack up prices, the federal competition watchdog said in a speech this week.

Competition commissioner Matthew Boswell made the case for competition policy as a tool to tamp down consumer prices in Canada, where shopping for groceries and pumping gas has become “anxiety inducing,” as he put it:

Know this: Less competition makes matters worse. Vigorous enforcement of competition laws is absolutely necessary. It deters business conduct that could otherwise make inflation worse, due to collusion with rivals or harm to the competitive process.
I can assure you we have zero tolerance for any attempts to use the current economic context as cover to engage in anti-competitive conduct.
While it’s not the silver bullet to combat inflation, more competition must be part of the solution to help address the rising cost of living. There’s a role for governments at all levels to examine policies and regulations to ensure they encourage, and not undermine, competition in our economy.

If we do this right, we can keep growing. Or we can get it wrong. We can stifle competition, whether due to anti-competitive behaviour or regulatory impediments. And suffer now and for years in the future as a result.

See:

The remarks come as Boswell’s Competition Bureau embarks on one of the most high-profile legal battles in its history, attempting to block Rogers Communications Inc.’s $26-billion takeover of Shaw Communications Inc. In his speech, Boswell said he’s challenging the merger because he wants to “protect Canadians from higher prices, poorer service quality and fewer choices” — reiterating the bureau’s previous statements on the matter.

Robin Shaban, a former officer at the Competition Bureau and senior economist at Vivic Research:

We do know that our current approach, an oligopolistic way of organizing our society, it’s just not cutting it any more.

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