Watchdog under fire over kennel probe

THE Competition Authority yesterday was portrayed as having skewered priorities, pursuing cases involving “pedigree moggies” while making insufficient inroads against major anti-competitive practices.

A member of the Dáil’s public finance watchdog singled out an investigation involving the Irish Kennel Club, questioning whether it would register with consumers as a matter of vital interest for competition.

Fine Gael’s Michael Noonan was one of several members of the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) who suggested the authority was not emphasising its enforcement role sufficiently, conducting investigations and initiating prosecutions against alleged anti-competitive practices in the pub and cement trades, and in the legal, medical, and auctioneering professions.