The Goals of Competition Policy

1 December 2022 | 09.30-13.00 CETParis, France

THE 2022 OECD GLOBAL FORUM ON COMPETITION DISCUSSED THE GOALS OF COMPETITION POLICY

Most jurisdictions have embraced some form of the consumer welfare standard to achieve the basic goals of competition: to maintain and encourage the process of competition in order to promote efficient use of resources while protecting the freedom of economic action of various market participants. Some also consider competition policy as a tool to contribute to a number of other objectives: pluralism, decentralisation of economic decision-making, preventing abuses of economic power, promoting small business, fairness and equity and other socio-political values. These “supplementary” objectives tend to vary across jurisdictions and over time. The latter reflects the changing nature and adaptability of competition policy so as to address current concerns of society while remaining steadfast to the basic objectives.

In December 2022, the OECD Global Forum on Competition questioned whether competition law and policy needs to adapt as a policy instrument to better accommodate socio-economic trends such as the rising importance of sustainability. Is the current consumer welfare focus sufficient? Is the instrument of competition law enforcement still effective or does it need to be complemented by other instruments, or new legislation?

Watch the session on replay

FORUM 2022

Programme 2022

Photo album

Global Forum home page

Subsidies, Competition and Trade

Remedies and Commitments in Abuse Cases

Interactions between competition authorities and sector regulators

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See also the full list of OECD best practice roundtables on competition

Speakers

Opening Session

	Mathias CORMANN Bio Secretary-General, OECD
	Margrethe Vestager Bio ‌ Executive Vice-President for a Europe Fit for the Digital Age and Commissioner for Competition, European Commission
	Rebeca Grynspan Bio ‌ Secretary-General, UNCTAD
	Frédéric JENNY Bio Chairman, OECD Competition Committee
	Carmine Di Noia Bio ‌ Director, OECD Directorate for Financial and Enterprise Affairs

Panel Speakers

	Johannes B. R. Bernabe Bio ‌ OIC Chairperson and Commissioner, PCC, Philippines
	Tembinkosi Bonakele Bio ‌ Former Commissioner, CCSA, South Africa
	Mick Keogh Bio Deputy Chair, ACCC, Australia
	Esteban Greco Bio‌ Director, GAMES Economics
	Lina M. Khan Bio ‌ Chair, FTC, United States
	Spencer Weber Waller Bio‌ ‌ Justice John Paul Stevens Chair in Competition Law and Professor, Loyola University Chicago School of Law

Presentations

Spencer Weber Waller

Greco

Documents

Contributions

Consumers International

Pakistan

Uzbekistan

Related links