And how does preventing an independent competition agency from enforcing the rule of law against monopolists contribute to achieving that growth? A chancellor that either doesn't see or care about the incoherence of that policy should resign.

Caving in to lobbying and dismantling the CMA as an independent institution capable of defending consumers (and workers) from monopolies is an act of economic vandalism that damages growth and drives inequality - these signatories should be ashamed of cheerleading this nonsense

Which means it can only be a deliberate move to follow the Irish path of capitulation in the face of corporate misconduct in the naive hope of winning favours from bullying monopolists. Singapore-on-Thames?

Strong competition enforcement is such an obvious win-win for everyone except the monopolist - pro-growth, pro-consumer and pro-worker, that it's hard to believe this is an unwitting mistake.

With Draghi recommending the adoption of fake market definitions in order to clear telecom mergers, and the CMA apparently wobbling in the face of fake remedies, the need to look past the lobbyists and return to the evidence is greater than ever. #mergercontrol #cma #competition

This is especially important right now at a time when well-informed commentators report that the CMA is giving serious thought to abandoning its commitment to protect consumers from the cost of living crisis, and accepting the incoherent, unreliable and unworkable promises offered by Vodafone.