The Competition Commission (COMCO) is the

Swiss Swiss most commonly refers to: * the adjectival form of Switzerland * Swiss people Swiss may also refer to: Places * Swiss, Missouri * Swiss, North Carolina * Swiss, West Virginia * Swiss, Wisconsin Other uses * Swiss Café, an old café located ...

competition regulator A competition regulator is the institution that oversees the functioning of markets. It identifies and corrects practices causing market impediments and distortions through competition law (also known as antitrust law). In general it is a governm ...

. Created in 1995, the commission is subordinated to the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research but operates independently. It is responsible for the enforcement of Swiss competition law (in particular

cartel A cartel is a group of independent market participants who collaborate with each other as well as agreeing not to compete with each other in order to improve their profits and dominate the market. A cartel is an organization formed by producers ...

law). It is made up of twelve members (on a militia basis) and will employ around seventy people in 2023.

Composition and organization

Members of the Commission

The members of COMCO are appointed by the Federal Council. It is composed of eleven to fifteen members.Art. 18 para. 2 CartA.
/ref> The Cartel Act stipulates that the majority of COMCO members must be independent experts. However, some members may be representatives of

umbrella organization An umbrella organization is an association of (often related, industry-specific) institutions who work together formally to coordinate activities and/or pool resources. In business, political, and other environments, it provides resources and iden ...

s. The members hold a militia position, i.e. it is not a full-time post, but the members carry out another activity in parallel (e.g. university lecturer). Commission members must, however, declare their interests. The umbrella organisations represented on the Commission in 2023 were the

Swiss Trade Union Federation The Swiss Trade Union Federation (, SGB; ; , USS) is the largest national trade union center in Switzerland. History The federation was founded in 1880. The SGB has close ties with the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (SPS). Ruth Dreifuss ...

, the Swiss Farmers' Union and Economiesuisse.

Independence

The commission is administratively attached to the Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research but carries out its activities independently, so that it is not bound by directives issued by the Federal Administration. This independence is important for the role of the COMCO because the State is often the subject of proceedings before the commission (as the owner, operator or regulator of a market, for example in the case of

Swisscom Swisscom is a major telecommunications provider in Switzerland. Its headquarters are located in Worblaufen near Bern. The Swiss government owns 51% of Swisscom. According to its own published data, Swisscom holds a market share of 56% for mob ...

, which is majority-owned by the Confederation). However, according to experts in this field quoted by the

Tages-Anzeiger ''Tages-Anzeiger'' (), also abbreviated ''Tagi'' or ''TA'', is a Swiss German-language national daily newspaper published in Zurich, Switzerland. History and profile The paper was first published under the name ''Tages-Anzeiger für Stadt und K ...

in 2018, political pressure can be felt when the COMCO tackles major dossiers that are considered sensitive. In 2005, the OECD recommended that Switzerland guarantee effective independence for the COMCO; in particular, it criticised the presence of representatives of the main trade associations on its board.

Notes

References

External links

* {{Authority control Federal offices of Switzerland Federal Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research