Dáil Éireann Debate, Tuesday - 28 April 2026
498. Deputy William Aird asked the Minister for Enterprise, Tourism and Employment the way in which the proposed Consumer Protection, Competition and Enforcement Bill 2026 will enable the Consumer and Competition Protection Commission (CCPC) to act more quickly against unfair business practices; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [30553/26]
View answerThe purpose of the Consumer Protection, Competition and Enforcement Bill 2026 is to implement a series of targeted enhancements to Ireland’s consumer-protection and competition-enforcement framework, ensuring that it remains robust, modern and aligned with national strategic priorities.
The Bill will introduce a series of amendments to Ireland’s competition and consumer protection legislation including increasing the maximum fines applicable to specified offences under consumer-protection legislation. The Bill will also provide for the establishment of a statutory basis for administrative financial sanctions for breaches of consumer law, to be applied in cases involving repeated or systemic non-compliance.
The measures proposed in the Bill are designed primarily to increase the statutory enforcement powers of the CCPC. It will introduce administrative financial sanctions for breaches of consumer law, designed to tackle systemic breaches of consumer law where existing criminal sanctions are insufficient for timely and proportionate enforcement. This approach aligns with international best practice and ensures compliance in a proportionate manner without resorting to lengthy court processes. Administrative sanctions offer a flexible and efficient enforcement option, allowing the CCPC to address significant breaches quickly, while ensuring that penalties remain proportionate to the conduct and its impact.
The Bill will strengthen the ability of the CCPC to act more quickly and proactively against bid-rigging through the introduction of enhanced screening. Bid-rigging is a serious form of anti-competitive cartel behaviour in which a number of suppliers come together and agree secretly not to bid against one another for a tender or contract. As a result, the winning tender price may be higher than the price that would be reached through competitive tendering.
The bid-rigging screening provisions will enable the CCPC to detect and disrupt collusive behaviour more quickly, protect public expenditure, and enhance competition in procurement markets. Providing the CCPC with the legal framework to analyse procurement data aligns with international best practice and supports national competitiveness objectives by safeguarding fair competition, improving value for money in public expenditure, and ensuring public procurement processes operate with integrity and transparency.
These changes support Programme for Government commitments to strengthen competition, consumer protection and contribute to Ireland’s competitiveness objectives by promoting fair trading conditions and enhancing compliance across the marketplace.
