Under the Enterprise Act
2002, the Secretary of State for Business, Energy
and Industrial Strategy has the power to intervene in
mergers on public interest grounds relating to national
security. This responsibility is discharged in a
quasi-judicial capacity, which means that the Secretary
of State must act, and be seen to act, in a
scrupulously fair and impartial manner.
On 17 September 2019, acting on official advice, the
Secretary of State issued a European intervention
notice to intervene in the proposed sale on national
security grounds.
She has written to the Competition and Markets
Authority (CMA) to
inform them of her decision to intervene and instructed
them to investigate. The CMA will
now prepare a report on the national security aspects
of the proposed transaction. This is a statutory
process to ensure national security implications of a
proposed sale are fully assessed. The CMA has
until midnight at the end of 29 October 2019 to
complete and submit this report to the Secretary of
State.
Business Secretary said:
Following careful consideration of the proposed
takeover of Cobham, I have issued an intervention
notice on the grounds of national security.
As part of the statutory process, the Competition and
Markets Authority will now investigate and carry out
a review on the national security implications of the
transaction. They must report back to me by 29
October 2019.
The government’s goals are to support private sector
innovation whilst safeguarding the public interest.
