Ministers suspend competition law to tackle petrol crisis

Ministers have suspended competition law in order to help oil companies to supply petrol stations facing shortages after a weekend of panic buying.

After a meeting with industry bosses yesterday, business secretary Kwasi Kwarteng agreed to exempt the industry from the Competition Act 1998 for an unspecified period.

This decision will permit companies across the oil industry to collaborate without breaching competition rules to ensure petrol stations are supplied.

Called the Downstream Oil Protocol, it aims to help fuel producers, suppliers, hauliers and retailers to prioritise the delivery of fuel to locations that are most in need.

Brian Madderson, chair of the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA), told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme this morning that the protocol “…possibly allows the suppliers to put fuel into their competitors’ sites… and if so, the increased flexibility that that would give the supplying industry would be very welcome”. However, he added that this sole strategy would not be able to rectify the crisis.

The PRA said today that up to 90 per cent of its forecourts have run dry.

Kwarteng said the protocol is part of “long-standing contingency plans” intended for use in situations of major disruption.

“While there has always been and continues to be plenty of fuel at refineries and terminals, we are aware that there have been some issues with supply chains. This is why we will enact the Downstream Oil Protocol to ensure industry can share vital information and work together more effectively to ensure disruption is minimised.

The government is now considering whether to deploy the Army to help alleviate the delivery issues.