Competition Policy: Supermarkets

The majority voted against a motion to suspend the usual procedural rules of parliament - known as standing and sessional orders - in order to let another motion be introduced. This means that Kennedy MP Bob Katter (Katter's Australian Party) will not be able to introduce his motion.

Motion text

That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the Member for Kennedy from moving the following motion immediately—That:

(1) this House notes that:

(a) the Coles and Woolworths oligopoly is having an appalling impact on farmers and consumers around Australia;

(b) the people of Australia are being overcharged punitively by the supermarket giants whilst the nation's farmers are being paid prices which are below cost of production and do not provide them a liveable income;

(c) urgent action is required to level the playing field between the farmers and consumers on the one hand and the supermarket giants on the other;

(d) the Member for Kennedy and Member for Clark introduced the Reducing Supermarket Dominance Bill 2024 earlier this year which divests supermarkets of this market power, specifically by setting market power limits with associated timeframes, providing significant penalties and establishing an oversight body; and

(e) the Government's legislation merely increasing penalties does nothing to reform the supermarket sector and will only further line the pockets of the legal fraternity, and the current code penalty of $64,000 has rarely, if ever, been enforced; and

(2) the Member for Kennedy be permitted to present the Reducing Supermarket Dominance Bill 2024 immediately, and the bill be given priority over all other business in order to stop any further delay in providing affordability to consumers and fairness to farmers.