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AR-ICP-2026-64 / GBR / Joined evidence

United Kingdom Competition Policy Evidence Brief

A research note on product-market regulation and reported merger-control activity. The two sources retain separate reference periods, definitions, and coverage.

Evidence lanes
2 / 2
Joined evidence
Entry barriers
0.797
2023-01-01 reference date / 2023 methodology
2024 Decisions
28
#40 of 56
United Kingdom geographic locatorUnited Kingdom is highlighted on Natural Earth world geography. The locator establishes geographic identity and does not encode a metric.
Economy evidence locatorGBR / United KingdomPMR at 2023-01-01 and reported authority activity for 2015-2024.

Focused reading

What this evidence packet says

The selected measures shape this note; the full source snapshots remain below.
  1. 01

    United Kingdom's Entry barriers is 0.797 at 2023-01-01, ranked 2 of 55 published economy values when lower PMR values are sorted first.

  2. 02

    United Kingdom reported 28 decisions in 2024, ranked 40 of 56 published economy values.

  3. 03

    The regulatory snapshot and annual activity count use different source clocks and meanings. Their proximity on this page is a research navigation aid, not a composite score or effectiveness finding.

Regulation snapshot

Nine PMR measures, one dated framework

2023-01-01 reference date / 2023 methodology
MeasureCurrentRecalculated 2018DifferenceLower-value rank
Overall PMROECD-published economy-wide aggregate on a 0-6 scale; lower values encode a more competition-friendly regulatory framework.0.8970.984-0.087#3 of 55
State involvementOECD high-level indicator covering the regulatory channels through which state involvement can distort competitive conditions.0.9961.083-0.087#8 of 55
Entry barriersOECD high-level indicator covering administrative, sectoral, trade, and investment barriers to entry.0.7970.885-0.088#2 of 55
Public ownershipOECD medium-level indicator covering the scope, quality, and governance of public ownership.1.1981.185+0.012#26 of 55
Business operationsOECD medium-level indicator covering price controls, procurement, and operational intervention in service and network sectors.0.4040.377+0.028#1 of 55
Impact evaluationOECD medium-level indicator covering assessment of competitive impacts and stakeholder interaction.1.3881.688-0.300#15 of 55
Administrative burdenOECD medium-level indicator covering business administrative requirements, communication, simplification, licences, and permits.1.3441.3440.000#14 of 55
Service and network barriersOECD medium-level indicator covering barriers to entry in service and network sectors.0.8690.858+0.010#2 of 55
Trade and investmentOECD medium-level indicator covering foreign direct investment, trade facilitation, and tariff barriers.0.1780.452-0.275#2 of 55

Annual authority activity

2024 merger-control snapshot

2015-2024 annual reported activity
Merger decisions28#40 of 56 / focus 2024
United Kingdom Merger decisions, 2015-2024Annual reported values. Missing years are shown as gaps.8051222015: 742016: 722017: 612018: 512019: 492020: 422021: 472022: 402023: 512024: 282820152024
Counts are source-reported activity, not enforcement quality, deterrence, or market outcomes.
Measure2024Change from 2023Rank
NotificationsMerger notifications reported to competition authorities.
39-5#39 of 56
DecisionsMerger decisions reported by competition authorities.
28-23#40 of 56
Phase One clearancesPhase One or single-phase clearances without remedies.
18+2#44 of 56
Phase One remediesPhase One or single-phase clearances with remedies.
5-22#5 of 56
Phase Two clearancesPhase Two clearances after an in-depth investigation without remedies.
20#11 of 48
Phase Two remediesPhase Two clearances with remedies.
2-2#15 of 48
ProhibitionsPhase One or Phase Two prohibitions, challenges, or trials.
1-1#9 of 56
WithdrawalsNotifications withdrawn by merging parties.
30#14 of 56

Interpretation boundary

Read the lanes separately

This bridge aligns OECD Product Market Regulation economy codes with OECD Competition Trends economy-jurisdiction codes for navigation across two separate releases. PMR values describe encoded regulatory frameworks on a 0-6 scale at economy-specific reference dates. Competition Trends values count reported merger-control activity in 2015-2024. Positions, ranks, gaps, changes, and co-movement do not measure market concentration, enforcement quality, deterrence, welfare, institutional effectiveness, legal correctness, or causation.Economies join only when the two OECD releases publish the same exact economy code and name. No fuzzy name matching, imputation, forward filling, or composite score is used. Forty-seven economies join across both releases; PMR-only and enforcement-only economies remain visible as one-sided evidence records. EU and COMESA are retained separately as regional authorities and are not treated as economies in the bridge.

Source custody

Product Market Regulation Indicators, 2023 methodologyOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Period
current reference years 2023, 2024, 2025 / recalculated 2018
Reviewed
2026-07-24
Inspect source
A Decade of OECD Competition Trends, Data and InsightsOrganisation for Economic Co-operation and Development
Period
2015-2024
Reviewed
2026-07-24
Inspect source

Publication record

Cite this brief as a stable research object

current edition
International Competition Policy Evidence BriefsAR-ICP-2026-64Version 1.0
Author
Antitrust Radar Research Team
Published
Updated
Sources reviewed
Antitrust Radar Research Team. (2026, August 12). United Kingdom Competition Policy Evidence Brief. International Competition Policy Evidence Briefs, AR-ICP-2026-64 (Version 1.0). Antitrust Radar. https://antitrustradar.org/research/international/gbr
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