UK Energy Secretary Ed Davey has defended regulators in the wake of price-fixing allegations being raised against leading oil firms.
Conservative MP Robert Halfon had accused the Office of Fair Trading of being ‘limp-wristed and lettuce-like’ in investigating petrol pricing, and questioned how the OFT had failed to spot any of the allegations being looked into by the EC investigators.
But answering questions in the House of Commons today over the raids on Shell, BP and Statoil by the European Commission, Davey said: “The OFT is an independent body, it’s a strong body, it has powers, it made its investigation. It had a call for evidence, for information, and it is responding to that.
“It made some warnings, as you will know, it was concerned in a number of areas, not least transparency of petrol prices and diesel prices at motorway service stations.
“I know that as a result of this you will be concerned, the whole House will be concerned, to make sure any evidence is put before the European Commission and indeed the UK competition authorities, and I call on any members of this House or any members of the public if they have that information to bring it forward to the competition authorities.”
Davey told the Commons the UK Government was “deeply concerned” about the implications of the allegations – but added it had been made clear investigation did not presume guilt.
“The UK Government and regulators will provide any assistance necessary to the European investigators and we expect the companies concerned to fully comply with these investigations,” he said.
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