El Pais: Incoming EU Antitrust Chief Ribera plans on relaxing antitrust laws

According to a Thursday interview with the Spanish newspaper El Pais, Europe's new antitrust chief Teresa Ribera intends to relax competition rules in order to strengthen European industries. She also plans to speed up the regulatory scrutiny of mergers.

Ribera's comments highlight the increasing protectionism within the 27-country European Union, and the efforts made to assist companies in better competing with their larger U.S.

Her position also coincides with a report written by the former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi on Ursula von der Leyen's request. The report calls for a rewrite of EU competition laws and for regulators to review mergers in a pan-European manner.

Ribera said that "(the rules) can softened in a variety of directions, but in the sense strengthening European capabilities."

We are reforming them. Gaining agility and concentrating efforts to give industry a European strategic dimension.

She said that Europe should not focus only on a few industrial leaders.

"Europe's competiveness cannot be solved by just three or four national champions." "We need to be able to compete on international markets but also have a functioning internal market with an ecosystem that is reasonably balanced," Ribera stated.

She said that she would also try to reduce the time required for examining deals.

Ribera warned against using public money for nuclear energy. He is also responsible for driving the green transition of the EU.

"I would say to the question whether nuclear energy should promoted that each country should choose what they want. Public incentives are a different matter. She said, "That is a different question." (Reporting by Inti Landauro, Belen Carreno and Pietro Lombardi; Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

(source: Reuters)