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Sir Jonathan Faull and James Webber (London-Antitrust) discussed the U.K.’s decision to develop an independent U.K. subsidy control regime, including the reasons to move away from EU State aid rules as well as the costs and opportunities it creates.
This change is perhaps the most significant divergence from EU norms that the Government has yet announced. It will affect those who seek subsidy as well as those who compete against or finance subsidized firms. It’ll make U.K. industrial strategy more relevant and more sensitive to political change. For better or worse, companies and financial institutions will need to think much more deeply about this idiosyncratic corner of the law than has historically been the case.
Sir Jonathan Faull KCMG is Head of Public Affairs at Brunswick. He is a former Director General at the European Commission, where his recent roles included Director-General Financial Stability, Financial Services and Capital Markets Union, as well as Director-General of the Task Force for strategic issues related to the UK Referendum. Sir Jonathan was also Deputy Director-General in charge of State aid in 1999.
The discussion took place at 12:00 pm BST on June 4, 2020.