Government Notice No. 1424 of 2018

Competition Act (89/1998) and Competition Amendment Bill, 2018 [B 23B-2018] » Request for public comment on...

Title	Competition Act (89/1998) and Competition Amendment Bill, 2018 [B 23B-2018] » Request for public comment on the first Draft Set of Buyer Power Regulations in terms of the Competition Act and Competition Amendment Bill
Department	Economic Development
Gazette	National Gazettes, No. 42133 of 21 December, 2018, 10 page(s), 598Kb

12    No. 42133             GOVERNMENT GAZETTE, 21 DECEMBER 2018

NO.                       ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT               December 2018
          NO. 1424                                                                          21 DECEMBER 2018
          
                   REQUEST FOR PUBLIC COMMENT ON THE FIRST DRAFT SET OF BUYER
              POWER REGULATIONS IN TERMS OF THE COMPETITION ACT, 1998 (ACT NO. 89
                    OF 1998) AND THE COMPETITION AMENDMENT BILL, 2018 [B 23B-2018]

Background

In my address to the National Assembly at the Second Reading Debate on the
              Competition Amendment Bill, 2018 [B 23B-2018] (the "Bill ") on 23 October 2018,
              announced the establishment of a Panel which would draft regulations to give effect to
              the Bill once it has been passed by Parliament. It was further announced that these
              regulations would be the subject of consultation with the public and the Competition
              Commission (the "Commission "), in line with the proposed amendments to section 78 of
              the Competition Act (Act. 89 of 1998) (the "Act ").

Following the approval of the Bill by the National Council of Provinces on 4 December
              2018, the Panel has concluded its preliminary work on a first draft set of regulations to
              give effect to the amendments in section 8 of the Act, regarding Buyer power.

Clause 5 of the Bill has introduced a new subsection 8(4) to the Act, which states it is
              prohibited for a dominant firm in a sector designated by the Minister in terms of paragraph
              8(4)(d) to directly or indirectly, require from or impose on a supplier that is a small and
              medium business or a firm controlled or owned by historically disadvantaged persons,
              unfair -

(i)     prices; or
                 (ii)    other trading conditions.

Clause 5 of the Bill has further provided for regulations made by the Minister in terms of
              section 78 of the Act -
                 (i)    The factors and benchmarks for determining whether prices and other trading
                        conditions imposed are unfair;
                 (ii)   The sectors to which subsection 8(4) will apply; and
                 (iii)   In respect of firms owned or controlled by historically disadvantaged persons,
                        the benchmarks for determining the firms to which subsection 8(4) will apply

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Government Notice No. 1424 of 2018

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