Nationals Leader David Littleproud is calling on the Albanese Labor Government to release the ACCC’s interim report into Australia’s supermarket sector as the cost-of-living crisis continues to impact families across the nation.
The interim report, which examined the pricing practices of supermarkets as well as the relationship between wholesale, including farmgate, and retail prices, was delivered to the government last month but has not been released.
Mr Littleproud said the government’s failure to release the report was yet another example of Labor dragging its heels on dealing with potential supermarket price gouging that impacts farmers at the farmgate and families at the checkout.
“There are families that won’t have dinner tonight, yet the Albanese Government is so out of touch, they’ve failed to realise the urgency of addressing competition in the supermarket sector,” Mr Littleproud said.
“Labor needs to urgently release this interim report to allow full transparency on supermarket conduct.”
Mr Littleproud’s call comes as the ACCC today announced it had commenced separate legal proceedings against both Coles and Woolworths for allegedly breaching Australian Consumer Law by misleading consumers through discount pricing claims on hundreds of common supermarket products.
The ACCC alleges the supermarkets offered certain products at a regular price for at least 180 days. It claims they then increased the price by at least 15 per cent for a relatively short period of time, and subsequently placed it onto their ‘Prices Dropped’ or ‘Down Down’ program.
The ACCC alleges Woolworths made false or misleading representations to consumers about the prices of 266 products between September 2021 and May 2023.
It alleges Coles made false or misleading representations to consumers about the prices of 245 products between February 2022 and May 2023.
“Australian farmers and Australian families simply want fairness at the farmgate and the supermarket checkout,” Mr Littleproud said.
“Australians need less talk and more action from this government to ensure a fair price from the farm gate to your plate.”
