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Jurisdiction(s):
United Kingdom
United Kingdom
Key definition
Sector definition What does Sector mean? In legal practice, sector describes a category of economic activity or group of undertakings with shared products, services or regulation (for example energy, telecommunications, financial services or media), used to frame regulatory, contractual and transactional analysis. The term is generally descriptive rather than a single defined legal term, but specific statutes define sectors for particular purposes: in the UK, anti-money laundering law refers to the “regulated sector”, public procurement law identifies the “utilities sectors”, and national security screening specifies “sensitive sectors” for notifiable acquisitions; Irish legislation uses analogous concepts (for example “designated persons” for AML and sector-specific procurement directives). Usage...
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UK regulated sectors: sectoral regulators’ duties, licensing, price controls and competition concurrency with the CMA, including case allocation, enforcement procedures and special merger regimes in water, media plurality and healthcare
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Practice notes
Many UK industries are overseen by their own regulator—some (though not all) also possess concurrent competition powers, giving them authority to enforce Competition law within their particular Sector, alongside their routine supervisory functions. The framework for supervising distinct industries in the UK is intricate because of the interaction between a regulator’s sector‑specific rules and the application of competition law, and the need to balance both sets of powers coherently in practice.
This regime developed after the privatisation of various sectors and through the steady refinement of regulation over time, reflecting incremental changes rather than a single redesign within the UK context. Every regulated area is governed by its own specific and comprehensive framework, in considerable detail. Accordingly, although many issues and procedures are shared across most regulated sectors, the particulars frequently diverge in material and sometimes fundamental ways in practice. Consequently, one must consult the bespoke framework applicable to each sector for accurate guidance on application. For information on live competition cases and markets under examination by sector regulators, see also UK behavioural investigations—case tracker and UK market studies and market investigation references—case tracker.
Key features of regulated sectors
The regulated sectors share traits and structural elements that have shaped...
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Web page updated on 22/05/2026
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