Page 6398 - Week 19 - Tuesday, 17 December 1991
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MR SPEAKER, I PRESENT AN EXPOSURE DRAFT OF THE FAIR TRADING (FUEL PRICES) BILL 1991.
MR SPEAKER, THERE HAS BEEN CONSIDERABLE COMMUNITY UNREST ABOUT PETROL PRICES IN THE A.C.T.. THERE IS A WIDESPREAD PERCEPTION IN THE COMMUNITY THAT PETROL PRICES ARE SOMETIMES HIGHER IN THE A.C.T. THAN THEY SHOULD BE. A.C.T. RESIDENTS CAN HAVE THAT PERCEPTION EVERY TIME THEY TRAVEL BY CAR TO SYDNEY, AS MANY RESIDENTS DO REGULARLY, AND THEY CAN SEE THE PRICES ADVERTISED OUTSIDE PETROL STATIONS BY THE ROADSIDE. MR MATT ABRAHAMS OF THE ABC RADIO MORNING PROGRAM IS ABLE TO INFORM US NEARLY EVERY MORNING THAT PETROL IN FAR FLUNG PLACES IN THE OUTBACK IS CHEAPER THAN IN CANBERRA.
THE PRICES SURVEILLANCE AUTHORITY RECENTLY PUBLISHED A REPORT DEALING WITH ITS SURVEY OF CANBERRA AND SYDNEY PRICES AND THAT REPORT, ALTHOUGH CONCEDING THE LIMITED NATURE OF THE SURVEY, CONCLUDED THAT IN GENERAL TERMS A.C.T. PRICES WERE NOT EXCESSIVE. UNFORTUNATELY THAT SURVEY DID NOT CAPTURE THE NOTORIOUS PRE-EASTER PRICE HIKE WHICH CAUSED MUCH CONSUMER CONCERN EARLIER THIS YEAR.
MR SPEAKER, THE GOVERNMENT BELIEVES THAT THE PRICES SURVEILLANCE AUTHORITY STUDY WAS USEFUL AND VALUABLE. THE SURVEY POINTED TO A NUMBER OF FACTORS SUCH AS FREIGHTAGE AND OTHER COST FACTORS WHICH COULD AFFECT THE CANBERRA PRICE RELATIVE TO SYDNEY AND OTHER CAPITALS. THE SURVEY ALSO RECORDED MANY INSTANCES OF QUITE LARGE GAPS BETWEEN A.C.T. PRICES AND SYDNEY PRICES AND IT DID FIND THAT PRACTICES OCCURRED IN THE SYDNEY MARKET AND IN THE A.C.T. WHICH SOMETIMES MEANT THAT PRICE BENEFITS MIGHT NOT BE PASSED ON TO CONSUMERS IN THE A.C.T.
MR SPEAKER, THERE SEEMS TO BE EVIDENCE OF THE EXISTENCE OF POSSIBLY ILLEGAL PRACTICES IN ELEMENTS OF THE INDUSTRY. THE TRADE PRACTICES COMMISSION HAS LAUNCHED TWO PROSECUTIONS INVOLVING THE PETROL INDUSTRY IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA AND IN N.S.W
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