Competition Information
Part 9 of the Enterprise Act 2002 harmonised the gateways applicable to the disclosure of information relating to competition and consumer matters, making provision for the protection of "specified" information and setting out gateways allowing for disclosure. Specified information is information obtained by a public authority in connection with the exercise by it of any function it has under Parts, 1, 3, 4, 6, 7, or 8 of the Enterprise Act 2002, or any enactment listed in Schedule 14 to that Act, or which may be specified in secondary legislation by the Secretary of State.
	As enacted, Part 9 made provision so that such information may be disclosed both within the UK and overseas to enable a public authority to facilitate the exercise of its own statutory functions, and certain statutory functions of other persons, and for the purposes of any criminal investigations or proceedings. It also provided for more limited disclosure to overseas authorities for the purpose of any criminal investigations or proceedings. However, in relation to disclosure overseas for the purpose of civil proceedings, it provided for information to be disclosed only to those public bodies involved in the enforcement of consumer or competition legislation. In addition, competition information obtained under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and certain sensitive commercial information (for example, information connected to market and merger investigations) was expressly excluded from the overseas gateway.
	Amendments made since Part 9 was enacted include the addition of a gateway for disclosure for the purposes of prescribed civil proceedings by the Companies Act 2006, the removal of the gateway in relation to EU obligations by the Competition (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/93), and the removal of the restriction on sending overseas information connected to a merger investigation by the National Security and Investment Act 2021. In addition, in particular through the subsequent addition of more enactments, such as legislation relating to the Pubs Code in England and Wales, to Schedule 14 of the Enterprise Act 2002, the range of information covered by the Part 9 gateways has been expanded beyond that obtained in connection with purely competition and consumer protection related functions.