On 21 December 2009 the Irish High Court found that a regulatory proposal, the Variation, by the four Dublin local authorities, is a breach of national competition law. The Variation allows a single operator to collect household waste, irrespective of whether the operator is selected by...

Competition authorities typically issue Merger Guidelines setting out the framework within which merger assessment is conducted. Ireland is no exception. The Competition Authority is currently in the process of revising its 2002 Guidelines. In this paper we not only comment on the procedure that...

Governments throughout the western world and beyond are in the midst of a severe financial crisis and emerging from a sharp recession. Ireland is no exception. One of the options for strengthening public finances is the sale of state assets. In this paper we draw on the Irish experience to...

Under European Union proposals for CO2 emission reduction between 2013 and 2020, a Member State can transfer to another Member State the right to use its unused Clean Development Mechanism ('CDMs') credits. The paper addresses three issues in relation to these CDM Warrants ('CDMW'). First, how...

The Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment in its August 2009 Consultation Paper, Code of Practice for Grocery Goods Undertakings, argues that a Code governing grocery supplier/retailer relations, enforced by an Ombudsman, should be introduced. The Code constrains the behaviour of the...

The October 2009 Government Statement on Economic Regulation issued proposes a number of sensible reforms that are likely to improve regulatory performance in energy, airports, telecommunications, postal services and transport. However, the Government Statement also proposes to reduce the...

The market for corporate control plays an important role in ensuring that assets are deployed in an efficient and effective manner. However, on occasion, mergers might lead to a reduction in competition and a consequent rise in prices and/or other anticompetitive effects. The Competition Act...

Climate change is an important problem. It would be desirable to have legislation that would put Ireland on a low-cost and equitable trajectory to a zero-carbon economy. The draft Climate Change Response Bill 2010 will not achieve that. The exact emission reduction targets for 2020 are...

Under 2013 to 2020 European Union proposals for CO2 emission reduction, a Member State can transfer to another Member State 'part' of their allowed emission allocation in the non-Emission Trading Sector ('ETS'). The paper addresses three questions in relation to these Transfer Emission Units or...

The small public service vehicle (SPSV) market in Ireland appears to have adjusted well to the changed economic circumstances. The reduction in demand for SPSV services occasioned by the recession has been met by a price and quantity adjustment. Prices are regularly discounted off the regulated...