Labor leader and Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has unveiled plans to tackle supermarket pricing practices ahead of the upcoming election.
His proposal to make price gouging illegal follows an inquiry by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which could not confirm such allegations against major supermarket chains.
ABC News reports that the plan is part of broader efforts to regulate the grocery sector, despite the inquiry’s inconclusive findings. Details of how this would be enforced are yet to be fully outlined.
The Inquiry’s Findings and the Government’s Response
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) conducted a year-long inquiry into the grocery sector, particularly focusing on whether supermarkets like Coles and Woolworths were engaging in price gouging.
However, the inquiry’s final report, handed down earlier this month, could not confirm such allegations. While it highlighted that the two chains lacked strong incentives to compete on pricing, the ACCC refrained from labeling their pricing as ‘excessive’ or identifying a duopoly.
Despite the inquiry’s inconclusive findings, Prime Minister Albanese has vowed to establish a taskforce to address what he referred to as ‘excessive pricing.
The taskforce will include experts from Treasury, the ACCC, and other relevant stakeholders, and will be tasked with evaluating international laws on pricing to potentially create a new legal framework for Australia.
The taskforce will have six months to report back with a plan for legislation, which Albanese has promised will be introduced by the end of the year.
Albanese’s Commitment to Consumers
In an interview, Albanese emphasized the government’s determination to protect consumers, stating,
People know when they’re being ripped off, and we want to crack down on supermarkets. We want to make sure consumers are looked after, this is one of the measures we are taking.
Albanese also made it clear that supermarkets found guilty of price gouging would face heavy penalties :
We’ll fine them, with heavy fines, to make sure they know if they’re ripping people off, then they are in the gun to pay a heavy penalty for it.
When asked to define price gouging, Albanese responded :
How do you know what’s price gouging? Price gouging is when supermarkets are taking the piss.
Opposition Responses and Alternative Proposals
The opposition, led by Peter Dutton, has criticized the government’s approach. Dutton described the proposal as an attempt to distract from broader economic issues, pointing out the rising costs Australians face:
This is the sixth policy review the prime minister has offered in three years, prices have gone up thirty per cent in three years. I would say the prime minister is as weak as water.
Dutton pledged that if supermarkets acted against consumer interests, the Coalition would intervene. He added,
Where supermarkets act against the interest of consumers we will act, I promise you.
Treasurer’s Statements on the Labor Plan
Treasurer Jim Chalmers also responded to the criticism, defending Labor’s strategy.
Our plan helps deliver more competition, fairer prices and better deals for Australians, – he said.
We’re delivering a better deal for families at the check-out and a better deal for farmers at the farm gate.
Labor’s plan includes the introduction of a new mandatory food and grocery code of conduct, effective April 1, which could impose fines of up to $10 million for serious breaches.
Additionally, the government has increased the ACCC’s funding by over $30 million to help investigate and enforce compliance within the supermarket and retail sectors.
With these actions, Labor is positioning itself as the party that will ensure fairer pricing for Australian consumers, while simultaneously bolstering oversight and penalties for the country’s largest grocery chains.
