Fair Competition Act

The Fair Trading Commission (FTC) was established in 1993 to administer the Fair Competition Act (FCA). The Act provides for the maintenance and encouragement of competition in the conduct of trade and business and the provision of services in Jamaica, with a view to providing consumers with competitive prices and product choices. In that regard, the functions of the Commission are to:

• Carry out on its own initiative or at the request of any person such investigations or inquiries in relation to the conduct of business as will enable it to determine whether any enterprise is engaging in business practices which contravene the Act.
• Carry out investigations that may be requested by the Minister or that it may consider necessary or desirable in connection with competition matters.
• Advise the Minister on such matters relating to the operation of the Act, as it thinks fit or as may be requested by the Minister.

The Fair Competition Act authorizes the Commission to obtain such information as it considers necessary to carry out its functions and makes it a criminal offense to fail to provide the Commission with information when requested to do so; or to obstruct an investigation by destroying evidence or by knowingly providing false or misleading information.

Amendments to the Fair Competition Act are being considered at present.