A NUMBER of people are seeking immunity from prosecution in exchange for providing information to the State about illegal price-fixing practices in the Republic’s concrete industry.
The Competition Authority has received several complaints alleging that manufacturers agreed to fix prices for the supply of concrete for road building and other large-scale construction projects.
The Republic’s anti-trust laws ban price-fixing and companies found guilty of the practice could face millions of euro in fines, while individuals can be jailed for up to five years.
While the authority did not comment yesterday, it is understood that a number of those who have approached it were directly involved and have sought immunity from prosecution in exchange for evidence. They have yet to be told if they will be granted immunity.
The Competition Authority itself has yet to launch an official investigation into the complaints that it has received.
Irish competition law allows for immunity to be granted to whistleblowers, but the process takes time as the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) has to give consent.
The complaints made to the authority relate to a number of different regions and involve prices submitted for supplying concrete to projects that were, at least in some cases, taxpayer-funded.
The concrete and cement industries have been the subject of previous complaints to the authority, however many of them pre-date the 2002 Act which governs its activities, and it was unable to pursue them.
Britain’s Office of Fair Trade, headed by former Irish Competition Authority chairman John Fingleton, recently carried out a review of the industry there. Once the review was published, Mr Fingleton announced that the office would refer its findings to Britain’s Competition Commission for a full-scale investigation. EU authorities are also scrutinising the sector.
The Competition Authority supervises mergers and acquisitions and investigates possible competition law offences. It has the power to prosecute minor offences in the District Court, but suspected serious offences are referred to the DPP.
A business convicted by a jury of price-fixing or any other competition law offence can be fined up to €4 million or 10 per cent of its turnover, whichever is the larger.
