Strengthening competition and innovation in Canada: 2013-2018 скачать в хорошем качестве

Strengthening competition and innovation in Canada: 2013-2018

Disponible en français :    • Renforcer la concurrence et l’innovation a...   Looking back at the Competition Bureau’s accomplishments under the leadership of Commissioner of Competition John Pecman. Correction at 1:10 – the Competition Bureau reached a consensual resolution with Volkswagen and Audi in 2016, followed by a separate consensual resolution with Volkswagen, Audi and Porsche in 2018. For more information: https://bit.ly/2CUS63d. ----- Transcript The Bureau has made important progress over the past five years. When the Commissioner took over, his vision for the Bureau was really to deliver on our mandate in a more holistic and balanced way and he created the Competition Promotion Branch, which he has referred to publically as the "crown jewel" of the restructuring. We've made a lot of progress with domestic and international collaboration leading to a more efficient and transparent Bureau. I would say that the shiniest aspects of the Commissioner's "crown jewel" are really with respect to shared compliance and with respect to competition advocacy. We can see very positive benefits to our advocacy like lower prices, increased choice and more innovation. So just on the notion of "shared compliance", that really means that the Bureau, the Bar, the business community all have a role to play in ensuring that businesses comply with the law. We've seen an increase in compliance with our laws and this has been largely due to a culture of compliance that has been advocated within the organization. We can achieve immeasurably more if we are working together, and this is obviously for the benefit of Canadian consumers, business and the Canadian economy as a whole as well. The other thing, I would say, is that there has been a culture of transparency that has been injected within the Bureau. We believe in providing Canadians with as much information as we possibly can so that they can better protect themselves against, for example, deceptive marketing and fraud. I think the most memorable Cartel case over the last five years and beyond has been the octane case in Quebec. We've obtained some really good results. It was a very long-running investigation and the prosecution is still ongoing. The second important case has been the motor vehicle components case. We have also obtained some great results in this area, but I think most importantly we have established some great relationships with our international partners through the enforcement of these cases. Cartel enforcement is a high priority for the Bureau and will continue to be a high priority for many years to come. These types of agreements to fix prices, allocate markets, restrict output, are egregious and they result in higher prices for consumers, of course less innovation and less consumer choice. In terms of Mergers, over the last five years, I would have to say that the Parkland/Pioneer merger transaction is the most important. A couple of "firsts" with respect to that case. First time that the Commissioner sought an injunction to halt a merger pending an application before the Tribunal. And secondly, first time that a case before the Tribunal was ultimately resolved by way of mediation. So, in terms of Monopolistic Practices, there have been several very important cases, but the most important, in my view, is the Toronto Real Estate Board Case. We got a ruling from the Federal Court of Appeal late in 2017. The Federal Court of Appeal upheld, or agreed with, the Commissioner's arguments that TREB's restrictions impeded innovation, impeded competition, and it was a case where we advanced non-price effects as very important in competition. I truly believe that what Commissioner Pecman has done is he has drawn the very best from each of his predecessors to create the Competition Bureau that we see today. And all of us working together towards this vision of this Bureau without borders. Commissioner Pecman leaves a profound legacy on the organization: his belief that we could do more to protect consumers and foster innovation has ensured that we have the stellar organization that we have today. John Pecman is somebody who truly believes in competitive markets and believes in what we do at the Bureau. He also very much believes in working together – with the Bar, the business community, our international partners – to advance competition law and policy. And he's often the person who brings people together, we've seen that very much on the international scene. And that will be a big part of his legacy.