EU opposes plan to merge anti-monopoly body with telecoms watchdog

A letter sent by European Union (EU) Commissioner Neelie Kroes to the Spanish government expresses ‘deep concern’ over a plan to merge Spain’s anti-monopoly authority with its regulatory agencies for telecoms and energy by mid-2013, which received state approval last year, Dow Jones Newswires reports. The letter asks Spain to substantially revise its plan on the basis that it would result in a lack of independence of the resulting market and anti-trust watchdog, otherwise the EU Commission will open an infringement procedure against the country. The Spanish telecoms regulator, the Comision del Mercado de las Telecomunicacinoes (CMT) operates under the auspices of the Secretaria de Estado de Telecomunicaciones y para la Sociedad de la Informacion, which itself is part of the multi-sector Ministerio de Industria, Energia y Turismo (Minetur). The National Competition Commission acts as Spain’s anti-monopoly agency across all commercial sectors.