Clause 55 - Duties of OFT and Commission
Enterprise Bill
6:15 pm
Miss Melanie Johnson (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department of Trade and Industry; Welwyn Hatfield, Labour)
I want to ensure that the hon. Gentleman is aware that we want to be certain that representations are seen by the Secretary of State when relevant. The OFT will alert the Secretary of State to representations that a case that it is considering raises a specified public interest consideration, but will not if the representation appears immaterial. That is important because vexatious representations are possible. The OFT and the Competition Commission will alert the Secretary of State to any calls for new public interest considerations, and they will not be case specific. I hope that I have answered the hon. Gentleman.