(Bloomberg) -- The UK has appointed the first woman as head of the nation’s antitrust watchdog, as it searches for a permanent chief to steer the increasingly aggressive regulator.

Sarah Cardell, who currently serves as the Competition and Markets Authority’s most senior lawyer, will take over the role from chief executive Andrea Coscelli on an interim bases when he steps down in July after six years, Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said in a statement on Friday. The UK has now began the recruitment process for a new permanent CEO.

By promoting Cardell, the UK joins with the European Union, where Margrethe Vestager is in her second term as competition commissioner, and the US, which last year elevated Lina Khan to become chair of the Federal Trade Commission.

The CMA has become more interventionist and expanded its global profile under Coscelli’s tenure, flexing its powers in clamping down on big tech dominance. It launched a probe last week into Alphabet Inc.’s Google Play app store over suspected anticompetitive conduct, alongside results of a sweeping study taking aim at Alphabet and Apple Inc.’s “strong grip” over mobile technologies. 

A changing of the guards is taking place at the agency, with Kwarteng recently ending a two year search to fill the position of chair by nominating ex-Boston Consulting Group senior partner Marcus Bokkerink. 

Cardell and her successor will inherit the CMA’s ambitious probes and also await legislation which gives its Digital Markets Unit the power to enforce more types of intervention. The agency is also grappling with how to use its powers to deal with the cost-of-living crisis, including opening a review into the fuel market ordered by the government.

Cardell takes over at a time when critics argue that the agency is taking a more interventionist approach than is necessary and that the watchdog has become more politicized and less business friendly. The UK says it wants the next CEO to prioritize both competition and consumers.

“The work of the CMA to promote competition has never been more important, ensuring that prices remain as low as possible and supporting growth and innovation in our economy,” said Cardell in a statement. 

Read more: Silicon Valley Will Be Tamed By Global Response, U.K. Chief Says

 

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