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EU: German EC candidate calls for “political” competition rules

By  |  April 10, 2019

According to the Financial Times, Manfred Weber, a German MEP and “lead candidate” for the European People’s Party wants the next European Commission to behave “more politically” when making key decisions over merger rules and state-aid.

Brussels should be ready to make “political” use of its powerful competition rules to foster the creation of European industrial champions, according to the center-right candidate who is running to be the next European Commission president.

“We have to behave more politically because China is behaving more politically”, Mr Weber said at an event in Brussels, co-hosted by the Financial Times and the Bruegel think-tank. The German conservative said he would propose a change to EU competition rules to create exemptions in “special cases” where mergers would result in the creation of European champions.

His comments come after Margrethe Vestager, Brussels’ current competition chief, blocked a tie up between Germany’s Siemens and France’s Alstom rail manufacturers earlier this year.

Full Content: Financial Times

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