Part 1: Digital Markets Administration Section 104: Extension etc of periods
This section sets out the powers the CMA has to extend the statutory deadlines established in Part 1 of this Act.
	Subsections (1) and (2) establish the CMA’s power to extend the relevant investigation period or a period when the final offer mechanism is being used by up to three months for special reasons. Subsection (8) defines ‘relevant investigation period’ as being the period set by the statutory deadlines for SMS investigations, conduct requirement breach investigations, and pro-competition intervention investigations. The section does not further define ‘special reasons’, but it is anticipated that they would include occasions where there are specific reasons which justify an extension of the normal time limits. These might include matters such as the illness or incapacity of members of an investigation team that has seriously impeded its work, an unexpected event such as a merger of competitors, or new relevant information. These reasons will depend on the relevant circumstances of each case. The CMA must publish a notice to trigger the beginning of any extension. The CMA must also specify in the notice how long the extension will be for (up to a maximum of three months).
	Subsection (3) establishes the CMA’s power to extend a relevant investigation period or period when the final offer mechanism is being used in the case of failure to comply with an information request (see section 69) or an interview request (section 72). The CMA must publish a notice to trigger the extension. The following conditions must be met before a notice can be published:
In the context of a relevant investigation period:
The CMA has issued an information request under section 69 or an interview request under section 72, as part of an SMS designation investigation, PCI investigation or conduct breach investigation, and the recipient of those requests has failed to comply. For example, a firm may have failed to return requested information or turn up to an interview. And,
By virtue of their request not being complied with, the CMA has been unable to properly carry out the function that the request was in relation to. For example, failure to supply information has led to the CMA being unable to properly assess whether a conduct requirement breach has taken place.
In the context of a final offer period:
The CMA has issued a notice under section 69 and a person has failed to comply with a requirement in that notice, and
By virtue of the notice not being complied with, the CMA has been unable to properly carry out any of its functions under sections 38 to 45.
	Subsection (4) requires the CMA to publish a notice to mark the end of an extension under subsection (3). This process of suspending the statutory time limits is colloquially known as "stopping the clock". Under subsection (5), the extension lasts until the information requested has been provided or the CMA has decided to end the extension period for some other reason, for example, because it has obtained the information required through another source. Sections 25(2) and 34ZB of the Enterprise Act 2002 set out equivalent powers.
	Subsection (7) explains the interaction between extensions to SMS investigations and active SMS designations. If the CMA is carrying out a further SMS investigation for a designated undertaking, and they need to extend that investigation, it is possible that the investigation would not conclude until the original designation has expired, meaning that undertaking would fall out of the regime before the need for continued SMS designation is confirmed. This subsection allows an SMS designation to be extended to match the length of the SMS investigation period. If the extension is made under subsection (3), an extension to the SMS designation can only be made if the person not complying is, or is connected to, the designated undertaking in question. Section 118, subsection (3) sets out when a person is "connected to" an undertaking.
	The power to extend relevant investigation periods under this section does not affect any other powers that the CMA has to address a failure to comply with the provisions noted above, such as the power to impose a fine under section 87.