Page 4408 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 14 October 2009
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“Anybody bidding for a site would need to be a full-line retailer and competitor to the major supermarket chains, demonstrated ability and infrastructure to run several full-line supermarkets,” he said.
“That would effectively rule out every family-owned business in Australia.”
He says it will encourage foreign companies to expand.
“What it would do would probably, certainly, allow Supabarn to open additional sites and that’s a good thing,” he said.
“But it would also facilitate the entry of foreign competitors while keeping out Australian family-owned businesses.”
An IGA owner contacted our office and he states that he is “concerned that the eligibility criteria being developed for land tenders will be used to exclude me from the process”. He said, “I want to be able to tender for new land releases. I will bring competitive tension to the ACT supermarket sector.”
I think this is the critical point and this will be the critical point of discussion going forward: the restrictions on Metcash associated entities or controlled entities. It appears very unclear at the moment. Notwithstanding Ms Porter’s statements, there is nothing that has been publicly said which clarifies exactly which IGAs will be precluded from bidding for some of these sites.
I would say again that the question needs to be asked: why would we want to exclude a Supa IGA from bidding for some of these sites in direct sales? Why would we want to keep them out? We only have to look at the example in Karabar, where the ACCC did step in and said that Woolworths coming in and getting the site would not enhance competition. But then there was a tender, or some form of process, where indeed there were a number of bidders and a Supa IGA actually was opened. I have spoken to the owners of that Supa IGA and a Supa IGA in Hawker and the question from them is: why should we be excluded from bidding for these sites?
If the result, and it is unclear, is that these groups, these local businesses, who have a strong local presence in Canberra and in the region, end up being excluded from bidding, the effect of that would be to lessen competition and the effect of that would be to preclude local businesses from growing. We are great supporters of Supabarn as a local business. It will be a wonderful thing to see Supabarn expand and compete more and more with Woolworths and Coles. But, likewise, other competitors like Supa IGA and others should also be encouraged.
So this is the question we have which has not been resolved. Hopefully if the Chief Minister speaks he can give some clarity, particularly around Metcash and where those restrictions start and end, because, Chief Minister, I had a conversation with the owner of the Hawker store, and I understand he emailed your office seeking some clarification. We have not heard the outcome of that, but we hope the Chief Minister is able to enlighten us and allay some of those fears.
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