The Future Ain't What it Used to Be - 20 Years of Competition Laws in Iceland

Date:           Friday September 27 2013
Time:          8:00 to 16:00
Location:  Radisson Hotel Saga (view on Google Map)

A broad spectrum of 30 policymakers, business-leaders, officials and academics discuss competition policy in a small and modern economy and the prospects and challenges of competition law, both in general (morning session) and as regards more specific challenges (afternoon session).

Morning session

  • How can we pave the way to more efficient markets?
  • Resurrection following the crisis. Where do we go from here?
  • What can the government do to increase competition in the public sector?
 Time  Event
08:00 – 08:30 Registration / Coffee
Conference chair: Kristín Haraldsdóttir, Chairman of the Board of the
Competition Authority
08:30 – 09:40 - Ragnheiður Elín Árnadóttir, Minister of Industry and Commerce
 

Keynote Speaker:

- Angel Gurría, Secretary-General of the OECD

  - John M. Connor, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Purdue University, US.
09:40 – 10:00 Break
10:00 – 10:45 - Þorsteinn Víglundsson, Confederation of Icelandic Employers (SA)
  - Christine Meyer, Director General of the Norwegian Competition Authority.
  - Páll Gunnar Pálsson, Director General of the Icelandic Competition Authority

10:50 – 11:45

Discussion with Angel Gurría and other speakers

  Moderator: Ari Kristinn Jónsson, President of Reykjavik University
11:45 – 12:30 Lunch buffet

A new report on the Resurrection of Icelandic companies and the state of play in terms of competition will be introduced during the morning session.

Afternoon session – Workshops in parallel sessions

 Time Event
12:30 – 14:00
Workshop 1:

Advocacy challenges - Competition policy as a tool to promote efficiency in the public sector.

 Conference The Futrue: Workshop1 Logo Panelists:
- Vilhjálmur Egilsson, Rector at Bifröst University (moderator)
- Illugi Gunnarsson, Minister of Education, Science and Culture
- Kristina Geiger, Deputy Director of the Swedish Competition Authority
- Cristiana Vitale, Senior Competition Policy Expert, OECD
- Victor D. Norman, Professor of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics
(NHH), and former minister of competition affairs
- Björn Zoega, CEO of Landsspitali University Hospital
- Oddur Steinarsson, CEO and Chief Physician, Nötkäran Kortedala, Primary Health Care Center, Gothenburg, Sweden
Workshop 2:

Optimal deterrence effect of competition law enforcement.

 Conference The Futrue: Workshop2 Logo Panelists:
- Helga Melkorka Óttarsdóttir, Supreme Court Attorney (moderator)
- John M. Connor, Professor Emeritus of Economics, Purdue University, US
- Páll Hreinsson, Judge at the EFTA Court
- Tim Ward, Barrister, Monckton Chambers, London.
- Jóna Björk Helgadóttir, District Court Attorney at Landslög Law Offices
- Ásgeir Einarsson, Deputy Director General of the Icelandic Competition Authority
   
14:30 – 16:00  
Workshop 3:

Enforcement challenges in network markets

– The case of the telecommunications market.

 Conference The Futrue: Workshop3 Logo Panelists:
- Kristín Haraldsdóttir, Chairman of the Board of the Competition Authority (moderator)
- Tim Ward, QC Barrister.
- Heiðrún Jónsdóttir, District Court Attorney at Aktis and Board member of Skipti hf. (telecom company)
- Jóakim Reynisson, CTO of Nova hf. (telecom company)
- Dóra Sif Tynes, Senior Legal Officer, EFTA Secretariat
- Páll Gunnar Pálsson, Director General of the Competition Authority
Workshop 4:

Competition as a tool to deal with the aftermath of the financial crisis

- The resurrection of the Icelandic economy, the competition environment

after the banking collapse in 2008 and the development of the banking

market.

 Conference The Futrue: Workshop4 Logo Panelists:
- Hreggviður Jónsson, Chairman of the Board of the Iceland Chamber
of Commerce (moderator)
- Miguel de la Mano, Head of Unit, Financial Markets, European Commission
- Birna Einarsdóttir, CEO of Íslandsbanki
- Jóhannes Karl Sveinsson, Chairman of the Competition Appeals Committee
- Victor D. Norman, Professor of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics
(NHH), and former minister of competition affairs
- Benedikt Árnason, Chief Economist of the Icelandic Competition Authority
   
16:00 – 17:00

 Cocktail


The conference will be held in English.
Admission is free of charge.