Part 2: Competition Chapter 4: Cartels Section 141: Production of information authorised by warrant
Section 141 amends section 194 of the Enterprise Act 2002 which makes provision regarding the grant of warrants, and the powers of the CMA when executing such warrants, to enter premises for the purposes of an investigation concerning the cartel offence. That offence is set out at section 188 of the Enterprise Act 2002. In England and Wales, and Northern Ireland, proceedings for the offence may only be brought by the Director of the Serious Fraud Office, or by, or with the consent of, the CMA.
	Section 194 of the Enterprise Act 2002 enables a named officer of the CMA (who may be accompanied by other CMA officers authorised by the CMA) to require the production of information held electronically and accessible from a premises during an inspection under a warrant. These investigative powers apply to the CMA only; where the Serious Fraud Office is investigating a suspected commission of the cartel offence it uses its powers under the Criminal Justice Act 1987.
	Subsection (2) amends section 194(1) of the Enterprise Act 2002 to expand the powers of, in England and Wales or Northern Ireland, the High Court or the CAT, and in Scotland, the sheriff, to grant a warrant to the CMA on the basis that there are reasonable grounds for suspecting that there are relevant documents accessible from any premises, where the other criteria set out in that section are met.
	Subsection (3) amends the powers set out at section 194(2) of the Enterprise Act 2002 which a warrant authorises the CMA officers to exercise. Section 194(2)(d) is amended to broaden the power to require the production of information stored electronically and accessible from the premises. This power will now apply to any information stored electronically and accessible from the premises, not only that which the named officer considers relates to a matter relevant to the investigation.
	Subsection (3) further inserts new paragraphs (e), (f) and (g) into section 194(2) of the Enterprise Act 2002. Paragraph (e) enables the CMA officers to operate equipment on the premises for the purpose of producing information stored in electronic form and accessible from the premises in a form in which it is visible and legible or in a form from which it can readily be produced in a visible and legible form. For example, this power could be used to operate equipment so that electronic information can be transferred securely to CMA devices or where an undertaking or its employees cannot or will not produce the required information in such a form. Paragraph (f) enables the CMA officers to require assistance from any person on the premises to access information held electronically and accessible from the premises (such as the provision of passwords or encryption keys). Paragraph (g) empowers the CMA to take copies of or seize anything produced which the named CMA officer considers relates to any matter relevant to the investigation.
	Subsection (4) makes a consequential amendment to section 196 of the Enterprise Act 2002 which deals with privileged information etc. Section 196(1) of the Enterprise Act 2002 provides that a person may not, under the powers at section 193 or 194, be required under the powers to produce or disclose a privileged communication, except that a lawyer may be required to provide the name and address of his client. Section 196(2) provides that a person may not be required under sections 193 or 194 to disclose any information or produce any document in respect of which he owes an obligation of confidence by virtue of carrying on any banking business, unless certain exceptions apply. Subsection (4) inserts a new section 196(2A) which sets out that nothing in section 194 authorises an officer to produce, seize, makes copies of or take extracts from any communication which a person could not be required to produce or disclose, as a result of the protection given by section 196(1) or (2).