PART I

Preliminary

1. —This Act may be cited as the Competition Act, 1991.

2. —(1) This Act shall come into operation on such day or days as may be fixed therefor by order or orders of the Minister, either generally or with reference to a particular purpose or provision, and different days may be so fixed for different purposes and different provisions of this Act.

(2) An order under subsection (1) may as respects the repeal effected by section 22 of the provisions of the Act of 1972 fix different days for the repeal of different provisions of that Act or for the repeal for different purposes of any provision of that Act.

3. —(1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires—

“the Act of 1972” means the Restrictive Practices Act, 1972 ;

“the Act of 1978” means the Mergers, Take-overs and Monopolies (Control) Act, 1978 ;

“the Act of 1987” means the Restrictive Practices (Amendment) Act, 1987 ;

“authorised officer” means a person appointed under section 20 ;

“the Authority” means the Competition Authority established by section 10 ;

“the Court” means the High Court or, in the case of an appeal, the Supreme Court;

“the Minister” means the Minister for Industry and Commerce;

“prescribed” means prescribed by regulations made by the Minister;

“undertaking” means a person being an individual, a body corporate or an unincorporated body of persons engaged for gain in the production, supply or distribution of goods or the provision of a service.

(2) In this Act a reference to a section or Schedule is to a section of, or Schedule to, this Act unless it is indicated that a reference to some other provision is intended.

(3) In this Act a reference to a subsection or paragraph is to the subsection or paragraph of the provision in which the reference occurs, unless it is indicated that reference to another provision is intended.

(4) In this Act a reference to any other enactment is to that enactment as amended by any other enactment including this Act.