MARGRETHE VESTAGER

Markets, when left to themselves, can sort of slip into being just the private property of big businesses and cartels, meeting the needs of some businesses and not the needs of customers.

when greed and fear are linked to power, you have a dangerous mix. We see that in political life. In part of the world, the mix of greed and fear means that those who get power become reluctant to give it back. One of the many things I like and admire in our democracies are the norms that make our leaders hand over power when voters tell them to

Sometimes, for businesses, competition can be inconvenient, because competition means that the race is never over, the game is never won. No matter how well you were doing in the past, there's always someone who are out there wanting to take your place. So the temptation to avoid competition is powerful. It's rooted in motives as old as Adam and Eve: in greed for yet more money, in fear of losing your position in the market and all the benefits it brings.

it's not only companies who can undermine fair competition. Governments can do it, too. And governments do that when they hand out subsidies to just the favorite few, the selected. They may do that when they hand out subsidies -- and, of course, all financed by taxpayers -- to companies. That may be in the form of special tax treatments, like the tax benefits that firms like Fiat, Starbucks and Apple got from some governments in Europe. Those subsidies stop companies from competing on equal terms. They can mean that the companies that succeed, well, they are the companies that got the most subsidy, the ones that are the best-connected, and not, as it should be, the companies that serve consumers the best.

The market is not the society. Our societies are, of course, much, much more than the market. But lack of trust in the market can rub off on society so we lose trust in our society as well. And it may be the most important thing we have, trust. We can trust each other if we are treated as equals. If we are all to have the same chances, well, we all have to follow the same fundamental rules. Of course, some people and some businesses are more successful than others, but we do not trust in a society if the prizes are handed out even before the contest begins.

Very few people think about politics all the time. Some even skip it at election time. But we are all in the market. Every day, we are in the market.

there are times when we need to step in to make sure that competition works the way it should. By doing that, we help the market to work fairly, because competition gives consumers the power to demand a fair deal. It means that companies know that if they cannot offer good prices or the service that's expected, well, the customers will go somewhere else.

the more our societies grow, the more important trust becomes and the harder it is to build. And that is a paradox of modern societies.

Elephants are social, thoughtful animals. They live in communities and - I have to say it - in matriarchal societies. They bear no grudge, but they remember well.

Being a politician, I know how motivating it can be when the public is outraged.

To me, a tax heaven is where everyone pays their fair share. In that respect, I am not quite sure we are in tax heaven yet.

In Europe, we have three tools when it comes to fair competition. One is antitrust, one is merger control, and the third is state aid control. And the third you don't have in the States.

If you want things done, you need to be able to find solutions.

The benefits of globalization do not trickle down automatically. It takes politics to make sure that there is a benefit.

History shows the power-grab in every religion once it gets organised. And then it's people making you do things that you don't agree with and setting the rules. But it does mean something to me to believe that we are not alone - the human animal is quite a scary thing, left on its own.

The list of plane reservations I keep on my phone - it's very, very, very long.

Part of being not only a liberal but also a human is to make your own decisions.

I don't think much about politics as such because it has no room in our working processes. Eventually, our cases will have to stand up in court. And court will hear nothing about politics.

I think any company should compete on the quality of their products, their prices, the novelty they can produce, their services, because that would be fair competition.

If you, as a company, can get a deal that I, as a company, cannot get, you can compete with me but not on the merits, because your tax burden is not the same as mine.

I think it's a completely good thing to want to do business, to want to make money and be a success in the marketplace, to get the attention of customers. I'm not in the business of pointing fingers or blaming companies, but there is a limit to everything.

When I was very young and came into politics, I basically thought ideas would do the trick.

I think it is one of the fundamentals, not only of the European Union but also of free trade, that competition is fair.

In Europe, we don't only take offence when one company is treating another company in a way that's illegal. We also look at if governments are joining up with companies that makes it more difficult for other companies. We also see that sometimes government actions can make it very difficult for businesses to compete on their merits.

Where I grew up, it was a very open home.