The Monopolies Commission considers that the conditions for ministerial authorisation have not been met and opposes its granting. The merger of Asklepios Kliniken Hamburg GmbH with Krankenhaus Mariahilf gGmbH would be expected to result in a restriction of competition of considerable significance. In the highly regulated hospital market, the quality of the services offered is the sole competitive parameter. The fact that competition in the hospital market is not entirely transparent lends particular weight to local competitive dynamics. These would be severely restricted by the merger, as the applicant already holds a dominant market position in the relevant geographic market of Hamburg-Harburg, even without the merger. No grounds of public interest of considerable weight arising from the merger can be identified.