Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what discussions his Department has had with the Competition and Markets Authority on monitoring for unfair market practices in construction materials supply chains while there is a shortage of construction materials.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is independent of government, with a remit to tackle individual and market-wide competition issues, including breaches of competition law. My Rt. Hon. Friend the Secretary of State, BEIS officials and I have regular discussions with the CMA on a wide range of issues.

At present, global demand for building materials is far in excess of supply, leading to product shortages and rapid and sustained price inflation. The situation is being exacerbated by disruption to shipping and port operations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. We continue to work closely with the Construction Leadership Council’s Product Availability Group to monitor and manage this challenging situation.