Key facts and people

• As a non-ministerial government department, the OFT plays a leading role in promoting and protecting consumer interests throughout the UK, while ensuring that businesses are fair and competitive. Our tools to carry out this work are the powers granted to the OFT under consumer and competition legislation.
  
  
• We expect to consider between 180-230 public mergers, and that around 30-50 of these will merit detailed consideration at case review meetings.
  
  
• The OFT investigates around 25-40 cases of suspected cartel activity every year.
  
  
• We have a designated Scambusters Team which aims to take action against the most prevalent and harmful scams aimed at UK consumers.
  
  
• We expect to carry out around seven market studies a year to assess whether there are problems with a market that prevent it from working well for consumers. Some of the studies we have carried out to date include  UK airports, payment protection insurance, the UK grocery market and the pharmaceutical price regulation scheme.
  
  
• Of its market studies, the OFT expects to make around three referrals to the Competition Commission for a more detailed investigation.
  
  
• The OFT regularly runs campaigns to raise business and consumer awareness on a variety of different issues.

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