Consequently consultation in the legislative process is one of the primordial tasks of the competition agency, and a key area of competition advocacy. $ ^{56} $ The ICN advocates mandatory or discretionary consultation mechanisms, but notes that the results in the case of mandatory consultation are better. Another relevant factor is whether the decisions of the competition agency are binding on the legislative process or sectoral regulator. Even if the results are not binding, at least having a binding requirement that forces the legislative process to justify why it has departed from the competition agencies' recommendation can have some useful effects. The key issue is to ensure that legislative bodies have to respond to advice given to them by competition agencies. This has been the case in many countries, where competition agencies, as part of a transparent process, make submissions on proposed legislation and regulations affecting sectors where competition concerns may be implicated.

To gain credibility with companies and attract investors, numerous governments have been simplifying and modernizing laws and regulations that affect regulated sectors. Effective regulators can go a long way toward ensuring that free markets operate fairly and do not disproportionately benefit certain producer elites. This is a crucial point in societies that are still adjusting to increased competition and where the social benefits of privatization and liberalization policies are not immediately apparent. When the regulator is also a market participant, the possibility of conflicts of interest arises. There is also an increased concern of regulatory capture. Enhancing the role of the competition agency is important because of the risk of regulatory capture of sector regulators. $ ^{57} $ This is less likely when the competition agency reviews sector regulations for anti-competitive effects. We advocate an approach that gives competition agencies the authority to give non-binding opinions and advise legislators, but does not give the competition agency the final say. We advocate that the competition agency's power should be concurrent with that of sector regulators. For example, if there is an issue related to the conduct of a regulated entity, both agencies will be involved in the review of such conduct.

### 7. Dealing with Legislators

In order for the competition agency to be effective, it must deal with legislators. It must be able to have credibility with legislators, and convince them of the benefits of competition. Although this can be done in a number of ways, reports are the most effective means of communicating credible, convincing evidence of the benefits of competition. Competition agencies would maximize effectiveness through the preparation reports on specific sectors. For example, at the recent ICN meeting, the European Commission announced that it would conduct sectoral studies on the electricity and energy sectors to ascertain possible anti-competitive practices, including those at the public sector level. Studies and reports can be very helpful advocacy tools. In the context of postal reform, the following study topics should be considered:

1. What model is to be used? Privatization, followed by liberalization in a sequenced fashion, or privatization accompanied by competition? What precisely will be the role of competition?