BarcelonaThe Catalan National Assembly did not violate any law. As ARA has learned, this is the conclusion of the research that the National Markets and Competition Commission (CNMC) has carried out for a year on the “strategic consumption” website that the ANC published to promote companies “free from political interference” and with “social and national consciousness”.
The CNMC has a period of eighteen months to resolve the complaints once they have been accepted for processing: the first twelve are for the instruction, which has been made by the Competition Directorate. This phase has already ended and the investigation has concluded that there was no illegality, which is why it proposes that the file be filed. The rest of the time until the eighteen months (which are fulfilled in June) is to submit the file to the CNMC council and for the CNMC to decide whether to accept the filing proposal.
A judge closed the website as a precaution two years ago at the request of Foment del Treball
According to the sources consulted, the most normal thing would be for this to happen and for the case to end here, although it cannot be ruled out that the council will decide not to approve the proposal made by the technical services and ask them to reconsider their position. . Consulted by this newspaper, the CNMC did not want to make assessments because “everything is confidential”.
In 2018, the ANC launched the Consumestrategic.cat website, in which it listed companies that, in its opinion, accredited attributes such as respect for the environment, cooperativism, the promotion of the Catalan language and that they had not moved. the registered office outside Catalonia after 1 October. However, the president of the ANC, Elisenda Paluzie, said that promoting the language or having its headquarters in Catalonia was not mandatory to go on the web, and that you could be there if other requirements were met.
Fomento accuses the ANC of promoting “a very direct attack on freedom of enterprise”
The creation of the website was ignited by the employer Foment del Treball, who reported it to both the competition authorities and the commercial courts. According to Foment, the ANC was promoting “a very direct attack on the freedom of enterprise” considering that, more than the promotion of certain companies, what the pro-independence organization was pursuing was the boycott of companies that were not listed in the your website.
Fomento won its first court victory when, in late 2019, it got a judge to close the ANC website on a precautionary basis. It also forced the suspension of any activity related to this, such as the strategic consumer fairs organized by the ANC. But the case is still pending.
Dispute in the TC to take over the case
Apart from the lawsuit, Foment also filed a complaint with the Catalan Competition Authority (ACCO), but the CNMC – which is the state body in this area – said it wanted to take on this case. This provoked a dispute between the two institutions, as each of them considered itself entitled to remain. On the one hand, the ACCO argued that this was an issue that affected only the Catalan territory, so it was up to it to investigate it. On the other hand, the CNMC argued that the effects of the campaign crossed Catalan borders and affected all of Spain.
The dispute reached the Constitutional Court, which ruled in favor of the CNMC, alleging that the website “may alter free competition in the national market as a whole.” As a result, the CNMC formally opened the case to the ANC in December 2020.
The penalties of the CNMC can be very high, between 100,000 and 10 million euros depending on the severity, in addition to 60,000 euros for each person who is part of the governing body of the company or association fined, according to competition law. In the case of the ANC, the executive committee consists of fourteen people.
Protagonists
Ana Botín assured Friday a The world who has lowered his home thermostat to 17 degrees to combat dependence on Russian energy. This cost him criticism from those who see it unbelievable that he has his house at such a low temperature. True or not, experts and the International Energy Agency warn that this is the right way to go. If we want to help Ukraine and stop financing Russia, in the short term it is most useful.
Some employers have mobilized in recent days to see if they could help Ukrainian refugees by giving them jobs in our country. The Ministry of Inclusion, Social Security and Migration has said they will be able to do so easily with a new procedure that has been opened . Meanwhile, José María Torres (from Pimec and Conpymes and a former candidate for the Barcelona Chamber of Deputies) has been very active on the networks uploading photos of his activity from the Polish border with Ukraine, where he has traveled to see the situation. on the ground “, as he explained to TVE on Friday, before leaving.
We often hear that managers are dominated by financial profiles and that they lack knowledge in the humanities. Despite this lack, it is difficult to find a business school to organize an event on literature. But Esade has broken this taboo and is holding an event on Tuesday to commemorate the centenary of the birth of Gabriel Ferrater. According to us, it has been promoted by Professor Eduard Bonet, who was a friend of Ferrater.
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