Ministers have ousted the chair of the UK’s competition watchdog following concerns over the Competition and Markets Authority’s push for growth.
Marcus Bokkerink, who has chaired the CMA since 2022, will be replaced on an interim basis by Doug Gurr, former boss of Amazon UK.
The business department confirmed Mr Bokkerink was stepping down just two years after being appointed – most CMA chairs are expected to serve for up to five years.
The CMA reportedly failed to convince ministers that it was sufficiently focused on growth.
The watchdog’s main responsibility is to ensure consumers are well served by effective and fair competition.
Mr Bokkerink’s departure is meant to send a pro-growth signal to businesses as Chancellor Rachel Reeves and Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds attend the World Economic Forum in Davos to meet global business leaders.
The CMA was one of 17 regulators ordered to put forward proposals on how to ease the burden on businesses and help spur economic growth.
The CMA was among regulators put on notice in October when Prime Miniser Keir Starmer used a speech at the government’s investment summit to promise that he would “rip out the bureaucracy that blocks investment” and ensure every regulator in the UK “takes growth as seriously as this room does”.
