• Poland’s presidency of the Council of the European Union offers a number of opportunities to promote competition and consumer protection.
• Joined by experts from other European consumer protection networks, Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK, will be discussing the priorities that need to be set in this specific area at the EU level.
• The European Competition Day, attended by Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, will focus on global challenges faced by the free market.

At the beginning of the year, Poland assumed its 6-month presidency of the Council of the European Union. This means that the country will be coordinating the work of EU’s institutions in selected areas of interest. It will be also representing the Council in relations with the European Commission and the European Parliament, and will be hosting numerous key events domestically. UOKiK has been leading, from the very beginning, the work of the Council’s working group on competition, as well as another working group focusing on the protection of consumers and information. Interacting with representatives of all Member States, it holds negotiations regarding legal acts aiming to protect consumers, and initiates discussions on topics related to competition protection and public aid.

- During Poland's Presidency, we aim to initiate discussions on solutions that will strengthen competition in the European market and enhance consumer protection amid dynamic technological changes. Our meetings and conferences will serve this purpose – says Tomasz Chróstny, President of UOKiK.

Consumer protection and CPN/CPC session

Effective consumer protection ensures the proper functioning of the single market, making it a key priority for successive presidencies, including the Polish one. On March 26, at the initiative of UOKiK and in cooperation with the European Commission, Warsaw will host a Joint High-Level CPN and CPC Network Meeting. Experts from across the EU will discuss consumer protection challenges, particularly in the context of rapid changes in the digital market. The talks will also focus on setting consumer protection-related priorities for the years to come, ways of making the enforcement of consumer-related legislation more effective, protecting vulnerable consumers and promoting self-aware consumption.

The CPN (Consumer Policy Network) and the CPC (Consumer Protection Cooperation) Network serve as the primary forums facilitating cooperation of EU Member States in areas related to consumer protection. The joint meeting of both Networks, which usually operate separately, organised in Warsaw by the Polish presidency underlines the importance of topics on the EU’s agenda, with a particular emphasis placed on the 2030 Consumer Agenda.

European Competition Day (ECD)

Warsaw will also host the European Competition Day that will be held on 26 May 2025. The event, with its motto being “The evolution of competition law: adapting to current policy shifts and global challenges”, will offer an opportunity to discuss current competition-related challenges that are faced both in Europe and globally. Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission, will be a special guest of ECD and will present the new European Commission’s approach towards the development of the competition policy and its role in strengthening the Europe’s competitiveness on worldwide markets.

The discussions held as part of ECD will focus, inter alia, on competition policy development directions and on the innovative approach to enforcing anti-monopoly regulations that relies on data analytics and flexible intervention tools. The event will also provide an opportunity to exchange experiences the competition protection authorities from various Member States have in applying competition law in those new areas. A panel meeting with the participation of renowned experts is also planned to discuss the evolution of competition law that has taken place over the past 30 years and to take a closer look at the potential future scenarios.

Security and digital transformation

During the Polish presidency, UOKiK will place a special emphasis on such strategic sectors as the energy industry, for instance. The process of boosting the European Union’s economic security involves such activities as monitoring the energy market in order to prevent any monopolistic practices. In the era in which digital technologies play an increasingly important role, UOKiK is also taking part in the work on regulations pertaining to AI, cybersecurity and combating disinformation.

Up-to-date information regarding the events organised by the Polish presidency is available at its website.