Ireland (or in the Irish language Éire) is the name of the State which under the 1937 Constitution of Ireland refers to the whole island of Ireland but acknowledges that the jurisdiction of the Irish Government and the courts extends only to that part of Ireland consisting of 26 of the 32 counties on the island. The other six counties make up Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK. The 26 counties in question were declared to be a republic in 1948 and thus, while the name of the State is Ireland, the area in which its laws apply and the description of the State is the Republic of Ireland. In any context where there is the potential for confusion on these matters, the State is normally referred to as the Republic of Ireland which does not include Northern Ireland.

Relevant legislation and statutory standards

Mergers and acquisitions are governed by Part 3 of the Competition Act 2002 (‘the Act’) which part came into force on 1 January 2003. Prior to the coming into force of the Act, mergers and acquisitions were regulated under the Mergers and Take-Overs (Control) Act 1978 (‘the 1978 Act’). Under the 1978 Act, the decision as to whether a merger would be allowed to proceed or not (with or without conditions) rested with the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment that is, a Minister of the Irish Government.