Industry committee  First of all, the Competition Bureau can't tell anybody or any business what to do or what not to do.

Industry committee  What we have the authority to do is to investigate and refer matters in the context of criminal investigations to the Attorney General, and in civil cases to the Competition Tribunal. As I've stated before, in the current situation, based on our information, as long as firms make unilateral decisions in their daily activities and in their business operations, that does not usually raise any concerns under the Competition Act.

Industry committee  Before getting into the details, just so that I understand your question, you were asking whether it makes a difference if the purchaser is Canadian or foreign, when we review a transaction or a merger?

Industry committee  And the seller. Maybe the best way to answer that question is to explain how mergers are looked at and what triggers a review of mergers by the Competition Bureau. For that, I'll turn it over to my colleague, Martine.

Industry committee  First of all, we review all the complaints we receive. At the Civil Matters Branch where I work, we review all the complaints referred to us, as provided for under the Act. I presume you are talking about the possibility of a price increase within a period of six months. Without making any particular assumptions, I can tell you this.

Industry committee  I am going to let my colleague answer that question.

Industry committee  Right now, on a decision like that, no.

Industry committee  I don't know where you would go for that. I would defer to my colleagues. Maybe they can....

Industry committee  At this point we're not engaged in any matter with regard to Shell Canada's closing of the refinery.

Industry committee  Yes.

Industry committee  I don't want to speculate on what would fit and what would not fit. What I can do is to explain to you what refusal to deal is, if you are interested in hearing about it. A refusal to deal is in section 75 of our Competition Act, where a person refuses to sell product to somebody else.

Industry committee  I would have to verify that. My quick recollection is that it's product.

Industry committee  It's important to remember that, as far as the Competition Bureau is concerned, what happens somewhere else or under different regulations are not matters the Bureau reviews or examines in any great depth, unless there is a requirement to do so because a specific issue has been referred to us.

Industry committee  I can't answer the question of whether you're speaking to the right people. What I can tell you, however, is that--not to repeat myself--we have an act, the Competition Act, that tells us what our mandate is, and we operate within that mandate. Again, if certain allegations were made and they were proven, we would take action in any matter.

Industry committee  Filing a complaint is generally the primary method by which we become aware of certain conduct in the marketplace. It's not always the only method. We can learn of situations through the media or through immunity applicants who decide to divulge their participation in a criminal cartel, for example.