Abstract With the central and eastern European countries (CEECs) increasingly included into the international division of labour in the European economic space, we are prompted to ask whether this integration operates on a level playing field with respect to competition policy. In fact, our analysis reveals that effectiveness of implementation of competition law and policy and intensity of competition are lower in the CEECs. We find no reason to believe that the new eastern EU members struggle with the recent reforms of competition policy in the EU, nor do we see the necessity for policy action to spur effective implementation.