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Head of Unit (AP)
About the CCPC
The Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (“CCPC”) is the statutory body responsible for enforcing competition and consumer protection law in Ireland. The CCPC plays a vital role in ensuring that markets work better for Irish consumers.
We are currently governed by an Executive Chairperson and three Commission Members (“the Commission”). The Commission is responsible for the strategic and operational management of the organisation to deliver on our mission and meet our regulatory objectives.
Each Division of the CCPC is overseen by a Member of the Commission, led by a Divisional Director and managed by a senior management team from within the Division. We are staffed with people from a wide range of technical backgrounds, including economists, lawyers, digital forensic specialists, investigators, communications professionals and more.
You can read our strategy statement which outlines the vision, mission, values and goals of the CCPC. Further information on the work of the CCPC to be found at www.ccpc.ie.
Division Overview
The Cartels Division is responsible for conducting criminal and administrative competition law investigations, primarily aimed at detection, deterrence, and prosecution of cartels. These include serious cartel offences such as price fixing, bid-rigging / tender collusion and dividing specific customers or geographic areas between competitors.
These offences are not only damaging to competition and the economy but ultimately cause consumers (including businesses) and/or the State to have less choice of goods and services available and/or to pay more for goods and services than they otherwise should.
The Cartels Division is also responsible for investigating other horizontal, anti-competitive practices and agreements (hub-and-spoke cartels, price-signalling, anti-competitive coordination or decisions by trade associations and professional associations, etc.), the offence of merger gun-jumping (where merging parties fail to notify a merger or implement a merger before approval has been obtained from the CCPC), as well as procedural offences or breaches of the relevant legislation, such as non-compliance by parties with the CCPC’s enforcement powers. The Cartels Division also considers immunity and leniency applications, confidential whistleblower information, complaints received and performs specific outreach in relation to our work to combat bid-rigging in public procurement.
Given these functions, the Cartels Division has the following two Sections:
- Immunity / Leniency & Case Stream (ILCS) and
- Investigations & Enforcement (I&E)
The Immunity/Leniency & Case Stream (ILCS) Section focuses on pre-investigations (i.e., detection and assessments of potential cases), to develop and maintain a constant stream of investigations. The Investigation & Enforcement (I&E) Section focuses on conducting full investigations. There is significant amount of cooperation and cross-over work between the two Sections. The Cartels Division has a current headcount of 16 staff.
Role Summary
The Competition (Amendment) Act 2022 has introduced a new administrative enforcement regime for breaches of competition law. As a result, the Cartels Division is now responsible for operating two separate competition enforcement regimes i.e. criminal and administrative. The 2022 Act also gives the CCPC additional investigative powers that can be used by the Cartels Division in its investigations. With all of these important changes to the competition enforcement landscape in Ireland, it is an exciting time to join the Cartels Division and the CCPC.
The work of the Cartels Division is very varied, meaningful, and interesting. Team members tackle a diverse range of cases from various industries and sectors, which means they are constantly researching different sectors and industries, staying abreast of international developments regarding cartel enforcement, and growing their own skills through in-house and external training opportunities.
As there is a significant amount of cooperation and cross-over work between the two Sections, we are therefore running one recruitment campaign for the Cartels Division, as follows:
One Head of Unit (at Assistant Principal grade) in the Investigation & Enforcement Section. This Head of Unit will lead a team of investigators in the Investigation and Enforcement Section within the Cartels Division and will be responsible for driving and progressing investigations in accordance with the divisional workplan while ensuring efficient investigation management.
AND
One Head of Unit (at Assistant Principal grade) in the Immunity/Leniency & Case Stream Section. This Head of Unit will lead a team of investigators/analysts within the Immunity/ Leniency & Case Stream Section of the Cartels Division, with a primary focus on cartel specific detection and pre-investigations in accordance with the divisional workplan.
The roles encompass both desk and field based investigative work so access to a car and a full clean driving licence is highly desirable.
For further information on this role and how to apply, please visit CCPC careers page.
