Suspected anticompetitive conduct in connection with the procurements for contracts to supply services at Heathrow and Derwentside Immigration Removal Centres
The CMA has investigated suspected anti-competitive conduct in connection with the ongoing procurement processes for the contracts to supply certain services at Heathrow and Derwentside Immigration Removal Centres, under the Competition Act 1998.
Case reference: 51111
Case timetable
| Date | Action |
|---|---|
| 14 February 2023 | Decision issued and publication of non-confidential version of the decision: The CMA has closed its investigation, on the basis that there are no grounds for action |
| 7 December 2022 | Provisional decision: The CMA has provisionally decided to close its investigation, on the basis that there are no grounds for action |
| December 2022 (estimate) | Decision on whether to proceed with the case |
| September 2022 to December 2022 | Initial Investigation |
| March 2022 to September 2022 | Initial investigation: information gathering, including issuance of information requests. CMA analysis and review of information gathered |
Change log
The following changes have been made to the case timetable since it was first published in March 2022:
| Date of change | Reason for change | Change made to timetable |
|---|---|---|
| 14 February 2023 | Final Decision | Decision issued and publication of non-confidential version of the decision: The CMA has closed its investigation, on the basis that there are no grounds for action |
| 7 December 2022 | Provisional decision | The CMA has provisionally decided to close its investigation, on the basis that there are no grounds for action |
| 18 October 2022 | Additional time needed for initial investigation | Period of initial investigation extended from September 2022 until December 2022. Date for decision on whether to proceed with the case changed from September 2022 to December 2022 (estimate) |
Final decision to close the investigation
On the 14 February 2023, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued a decision to close its investigation into suspected anti-competitive conduct in connection with the ongoing procurement processes run by the UK Government (the Home Office) for contracts to supply services at Heathrow and Derwentside Immigration Removal Centres (the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes), on the basis that there are no grounds for action.
The CMA’s investigation into the conduct of Mitie Group plc, Mitie Care and Custody Ltd (Mitie) and PAE Incorporated (or any other legal entity forming part of those undertakings) (PAE) (together the Parties), was prompted by information received by the CMA which led to a reasonable suspicion that the Parties had infringed competition law when PAE withdrew from the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes. Following an extensive investigation, and having consulted with the Parties and the Home Office, the CMA has decided that the balance of the evidence obtained indicates that PAE’s decision to withdraw from the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes was unilateral, and not the result of an anticompetitive agreement or concerted practice with Mitie.
- (14.2.23)
Provisional decision to close the investigation
On 7 December 2022, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) provisionally decided to close its investigation into suspected anticompetitive conduct in connection with the ongoing procurement processes run by the UK Government (the Home Office) for contracts to supply services at Heathrow and Derwentside Immigration Removal Centres (the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes), on the basis that there were no grounds for action.
The CMA’s investigation into the conduct of Mitie Group plc, Mitie Care and Custody Ltd (Mitie) and PAE Incorporated (or any other legal entity forming part of those undertakings) (PAE) (together the Parties), was prompted by information received by the CMA which led to a reasonable suspicion that the Parties had infringed competition law when PAE withdrew from the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes. Following an extensive investigation, the CMA provisionally decided that the balance of the evidence obtained indicated that PAE’s decision to withdraw from the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes was unilateral, and not the result of an anticompetitive agreement or concerted practice with Mitie.
The Parties and the Home Office were then given the opportunity to consider the CMA’s provisional decision and to respond to it.
Case information
On 1 March 2022, the CMA launched an investigation into suspected anti-competitive conduct in connection with the ongoing procurement processes run by the UK Government (Home Office) for the contracts to supply certain services at Heathrow and Derwentside Immigration Removal Centres in the UK (the HIRC and DIRC Procurement Processes).
Personal data
The CMA may collect, use and share personal data for its investigations, including investigations under the Competition Act 1998. This includes processing personal data for the purposes of the General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018.
For more information about how the CMA handles personal information, please see the CMA’s Personal Information Charter.
Contact
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Assistant project director: Anish Narendran (anish.narendran@cma.gov.uk)
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Project director: Christiane Williams (christiane.williams@cma.gov.uk)
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Senior responsible officer: Juliette Enser (juliette.enser@cma.gov.uk)
Updates to this page
Last updated 14 February 2023 + show all updates
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Non-confidential decision about the case closure published.
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Final decision to close investigation published.
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Provisional decision to close the investigation announced.
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Case timetable updated, case change log added and published.
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First published.