OREANDA-NEWS. August 13, 2014. The Head of the Federal Antimonopoly Service (FAS Russia), Igor Artemiev, made this statement delivering the 8th Annual Report on the State of Competition in the Russian Federation, to the Government of Russia.

As positive changes in the analyzed period, Igor Artemiev specified several measures adopted on various markets: implementing the “technological neutrality” principle, abolishing “mobile slavery”, starting deregulation of the tariffs for land telephony, emerging low-cost airlines, establishing exchange trading with oil and oil products, introducing the Code of Bona Fide Business Practices for trading with cars, spare parts, car repair services, etc.

The Head of FAS, emphasized, however, that the main objectives for developing competition had not been reached year in, year out. He pointed out at the absence of incentives for federal executive bodies and the governors in pursuing the policy for competition protection and development. “The heads of the authorities at all levels tend to resolve the problems by increasing state intervention in the economy and restricting competition”, said the Head of FAS.

Igor Artemiev also said that other obstacles for competition development in Russia include an obsolete Law “On Natural Monopolies” of 1995, an increasing role of state and municipal unitary enterprises in the economy, and a failure to adopt the rules for non-discriminatory access to the services of many holders of natural monopolies.

The Head of FAS specially emphasized competition problems in state and municipal procurement, including mass distribution of budgetary subsidies that replaces tender procedures for searching for public procurement executors.

According to FAS, efficient competition development policy needs rigorous execution of the Road Map for competition development, other Road Maps and the Regional Standard for Competition Development, as well as devising 2015 – 2025 Competition Development Strategy and introducing liability of officials for executing the adopted decisions.

Liability of ministers and governors must become real rather than declared, while the Regional Competition Development Standard should not be just a pilot project and must be introduced in all constituent territories of the Russian Federation.