The UK’s digital market regulation: the need for a proportionality principle in the CMA’s new framework

The application of the principle of proportionality in competition law enforcement is of utmost importance. However, there are concerns regarding its effective implementation under the DMCC Bill, primarily due to the restricted extent of judicial review. The lack of a comprehensive evaluation of the merits in the DMCC Bill could impede the meticulous assessment of proportionality in CMA decisions, potentially resulting in the adoption of measures that are not commensurate with their goals. This raises concerns about the possibility of implementing disproportionate measures. There is a pressing requirement for the CMA to provide more comprehensive instructions on how to apply the proportionality principle, specifically in terms of incorporating efficiency considerations, to guarantee the efficient implementation of the principle.

This is a pre-copyedited, author-produced version of an article accepted for publication in Journal of European Competition Law & Practice, following peer review. The version of record Miroslava Marinova, The UK’s digital market regulation: the need for a proportionality principle in the CMA’s new framework, Journal of European Competition Law & Practice, 2024;, lpae062, is available online at: https://doi.org/10.1093/jeclap/lpae062