Argument on taking the competition agency belong to the Government administration

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There are many different views on the Ministry of Industry and Trade’s proposal on taking the Vietnam National Committee belong to the Government Administration

The model is inappropriate

After more than 10 years of its introduction, the Competition Law has not implemented effectively, and even its effect has been insignificant. That was statement many delegates in the Consultation Conference on the draft Competition Law (revised) held by the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) in collaboration with the Ministry of Industry and Trade on May 10, 2017.

Specifically, in the first implementation of the Competition Law (to 2007), the fines for unfair competition was only 80 million vnd. In 2016, although, the fines increased to 2.1 billion vnd, it was still a very small amount.

According to the analysis from the Ministry of Industry and Trade, although there were many unfair competitive behaviours, the current Vietnam Law has an insufficient legal basis to adjust the above behaviours outside the country.

Therefore, the expansion of adjustment scope for competitive behaviours outside Vietnam but restricting the competitive capacity of Vietnam business environment is very necessary to protect the competitiveness of Vietnam market.

Besides, the Ministry of Industry and Trade assessed that the model of executive agencies was not appropriate (There are 2 agencies implementing the Competition Law: the Vietnam Competition Authority under the Ministry of Industry and Trade and the Vietnam Competition Council). Thereby, the discovery, inspection and process did not meet the requirements.

“Therefore, the Competition Law has not protected the competition environment, economic motives and any enterprises” Mr. Vu Van Thanh, Investigation Division of Competition Law under the Vietnam Competition Authority noted.

From actual occurrences during the implementation, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has drafted a more appropriate and more practical Competition Law (revised) so that the Competition Law will be the most important State management tool in the modern market economy.

Mr.Nguyen Duc Thanh, Director of the Institute for Economic and Policy Research (Hanoi National University)said that after the ineffective implementation, the amendment of the Competition Law was good but law enforcement is a big issue.

The Revised Draft will develop the contents and spirits, but the progressive contents are just an issue, how to take the law into life and maintain the fair competition will be a notable issue”, stated by Mr. Thanh.

National Competition Committee belongs to the Government?

In order to settle the issue of inappropriate model, in the Draft of the Ministry of Industry and Trade proposed to restructure the current competition agencies including Vietnam Competition Authority and Vietnam Competition Council into a unique agency that is the National Competition Committee under the Government Administration, established by the Government to carry out the Competition Law (revised).

However, this proposal from the Ministry of Industry and Trade is receiving different views. Supporting this proposal, Mr. Thanh stated that the separation of the executing agency outside the ministries was progressive to improve the enforcement of the Competition Law. Because in Vietnam, ministries and sectors also hold many businesses, so executive agencies will be difficult to implement, including the Ministry of Industry and Trade

Also agreeing with the transformation of the Vietnam Competition Authority and Vietnam Competition Council into a unique authority, but Ms. Dinh Thi My Loan, former Director of the Vietnam Competition Authority disagreed with the proposal that this unique agency will be under the Government administration. Mr. Loan stated that from the first days of operation of the Vietnam Competition Authority (from 2004-2005), we proposed to transform two above authorities into one authority. In fact, almost countries in the world also do like this, only a few countries have two competition authorities. But the National Competition Committee under the Government administration is unrealistic and infeasible.

"I think that the reason that the Competition Authority needs to ensure its independence and power, so that it is not to be part of a ministry, but it must be a subordinate unit of the Government to keep its position, is not absolutely true in terms of thinking. Because the position of the competition agency which ensures its independence is essential but this does not mean that where the position of the agency is to ensure the independence of that competition agency. Though where a competition agency is, it is not active and does not protect the competitiveness, no one can guarantee that that agency is independent, " analysed by Mrs. Loan.

Furthermore, she also proved that among 50 reference competition agencies in the world, only 4 agencies are under the National Assembly, 14 agencies are under the Government and 32 agencies are under Departments of some ministries, but they are absolutely independent in making decisions.

Thus, the international experiences showed that almost agencies are under the ministries, being completely appropriate, so that in Vietnam, the Competition Agency under the Ministry of Industry and Trade is entirely appropriate in terms of organisational structure, market and operation.

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I think that the argument "the Ministry of Industry and Commerce has many businesses so that it should be afraid of playing football while blowing the whistle," is a childish argument. And we resolve by not letting the competition agency under the governing ministries. But in some day, if the Ministry of Industry and Trade no longer has businesses, so why the competition agency is not under the Ministry of Industry and Trade to promote its role, "she asked.