Ooo err – I must be clairvoyant. A big double-page spread in the Sunday Telegraph on the subject I posted on, on Saturday, about the the iniquity of outcome on the BA and Virgin Atlantic price fixing probe.
Earlier reports on the collusion to fix the price of fuel surcharges mentioned both BA and Virgin Atlantic. I’m distinctly uncomfortable about the unequal treatment that BA received when compared to Virgin. BA is fined £300 million or so, and Virgin – zilch.
The Sunday Telegraph’s two articles are:
In their article – Branson takes a back seat - they report on this injustice as follows:
By blowing the whistle on the scam the airline [Virgin Atlantic] benefited from the extraordinarily generous exemptions from prosecution offered by both Britain’s Office of Fair Trading and the US Department of Justice.
In the past two months the normally publicity-hungry Virgin Atlantic has largely escaped the media spotlight. Its role in the price-fixing cartel has been overshadowed by the multi-million pound fines being handed out to BA;
BA also somewhat pointedly reveals that at least six of these [incidents of collusion to fix prices] were instigated by Virgin Atlantic.
For many the leniency enjoyed by Virgin Atlantic has seemed unjustified.
They report of the justification of this practice, as follows:
John Boyce, an expert in competition law with Slaughter & May, says: ” It might seem unfair to reward one company while fining others which may have played a lesser role, but these programmes have been highly successful in bringing new cases to light.”
That’s all well and good.
I certainly hold no brief for BA, and they more than likely deserve the fine. But, I still maintain that for Virgin to escape totally scot free is unjust.
What an effective conspiracy it would be, if by colluding with a competitor to fix prices, you could then run to the authorities claiming foul play, so that your competitor gets a heavy fine and all the bad press. Perhaps I’m being overly cynical.
[...] Forget Branson, Willie Walsh is our airline supremo While I respect Richard Branson’s entrepreneurial flair and supreme brand-building abilities, I do not respect his opinions on, or actions with regard to British Airways. See here on Unequal treatment, and Generous exemptions. [...]
By: Forget Branson, Willie Walsh is our airline supremo « Lightwater on November 13, 2009
at 1:37 pm