The head of the Competition Authority has called on the Government to implement a number of its key recommendations.
Speaking at a conference on regulation in Dublin, John Fingleton called for the splitting of ESB's generation and distribution activities, and the opening up of markets for pharmacies, pubs and the retail trade.
Dr Fingleton said the scale of concentration in some areas remained considerable. He said that in sectors such as supermarkets, food distribution, banking, soft drinks and outdoor advertising, the largest four firms had more than 80% of the market.
He also pointed to newspapers, beer, cement, liquid milk and industrial cleaning as areas where the leading firm had more than 50% of the market.
At the same conference, IBEC director general Turlough O'Sullivan reiterated a call by the employer body for the creation of a commission to oversee the various regulators that have been set up in recent years.
IBEC wants the consolidation of the country's regulators into a streamlined National Regulation Commission, which would co-ordinate the activities of all the regulators, including ComReg, the Commission for Energy Regulation and the Commission for Aviation Regulation.
The proposed commission would provide significant benefits all round, with reduced overall operating costs, a stronger body of regulators, more consistent decision-making and a shared appeals mechanism.
