Top 10 Anti-trust/Competition Headlines from UK During the earlier part of the financial crisis the European Commission approved State aid for troubled banks (eg Northern Rock) under “Article 87(3)(c) EC Treaty and the Rescue and Restructuring Guidelines”. The Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) increased the already wide ranging powers available to the courts in relation to the confiscation and asset forfeiture regimes provided under the Criminal Justice Act 1988 and the Drug Trafficking Act of 1994. On 8 July 2009, the European Commission announced that it had fined each of E.On (including its subsidiary E.On Ruhrgas) and GDF Suez EUR 553 million for operating a market-sharing agreement. The Office of Fair Trading – the UK’s competition law regulator – has fined recruitment agents in the building sector nearly £40m for having engaged in anti-competitive conduct, contrary to the Chapter I Prohibition of the Competition Act 1998. Since the Liner Conferences Block Exemption expired on 18 October 2008, Regulation 823/2000, the Consortia Block Exemption has been the only block exemption regulation applicable to the transport sector, and it will expire in April 2010. On 22 September 2009, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) brought its five year investigation into bid-rigging in the construction industry to a conclusion, imposing fines of £129.5 million on 103 contractors. On Monday BAA began its appeal in the Competition Appeal Tribunal ("CAT") against the UK Competition Commission's ("CC") order that it should sell three of its UK airports (following the CC's market investigation into BAA's airports). Last week, European Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes (the "Commissioner"), gave a speech in Brazil about recent developments in prosecuting cartels both in Europe and internationally. The Office of Fair Trading – the UK’s competition law regulator – has fined 103 businesses a total of £130m for having anti-competitive practices, contrary to the Chapter I Prohibition of the 1998. Germany's newly elected coalition government composed of the Christian Democratic Party (the "CDU") and the Free Democratic Party (the "FDP"), is currently discussing an amendment to the German Act against Restraints on Competition (the "ARC") which will empower the Federal Cartel Office (the "FCO") to apply structural remedies against companies accused of abusing their dominant position. | 
