He added that changes to the cartel offence, which remove the need to prove that those involved were acting dishonestly, could make it easier for the CMA, which succeeded the Competition Commission earlier this year, to prosecute individuals.
“Despite some heavy fines meted out in recent years, there’s been a sense that the new Competition and Markets Authority will want to show it has arrived by levying even more punitive fines for anti-competitive behaviour,” he said.
The high-profile £2.6m fine levied against Mercedes UK and three of its dealers in February last year was sparked by a whistleblower who came to authorities under the competition authorities' immunity programme.
Cartels are illegal in the UK because they are seen as highly damaging to consumers, potentially costing them substantial amounts of money from the lack of competition.
The penalties for involvement in collusion can be harsh, with fines of up to 10pc of global revenues. Individual directors can be sent to jail for as much as five years and could face an unlimited fine as well as a 15 year ban from boardrooms.
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