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The Competition & Markets Authority (CMA) is reviewing the retained Vertical Block Exemption Regulation (VBER) to inform its recommendation to the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) on replacing the retained VBER when it expires in May 2022. The retained VBER provides the criteria for exemption for vertical agreements which could be seen as negatively affecting competition. The current position of the CMA in this review is that retained VBER delivers what it was intended for, but the possibility to take into account specific features of the UK economy exists.
The review of retained VBER will include:
- contribution from interested parties where the CMA is keen to hear views on any UK-specific issues following the UK’s exit from the EU. For this, the CMA will be holding roundtables with relevant stakeholders;
- drawing on relevant evidence from the European Commission’s evaluation, which is also taking place (more information here).
For more information on the consultation, which is open until 6 July 2021, please see here.
