|
Current Issues
Australia's National Competition Policy: Its Evolution
and Operation
E-Brief: Online Only issued Date June 2001; updated 03 June
2003
John Kain, Analysis
and Policy,
Indra
KuruppuInformation/E-links
Rowena Billing
Information/E-links
Economics, Commerce and Industrial Relations Group
The purpose of this brief is to provide users with access to key
electronic documentation tracing the emergence of Australia's
present competition policy regime over the past decade, as well as
providing ready access to recent documentation which has been
significant in the day to day implementation and review of the
Policy.
Australian competition policy dates from 1906 when the first
Federal law dealing with restrictive practices was enacted. This
was the Australian Industries Preservation Act 1906, comparable
with the US Sherman Act of 1890 in that it sought to prohibit
monopolisation and other activities which restrained interstate
trade or damaged Australian industries by unfair competition.
However this legislation quickly fell into general disuse following
a very restricted interpretation of the Commonwealth's powers in
1910.
Contemporary Australian competition policy stems from the 1965
Trade Practices Act. Although it required registration of trade
agreements and contained scope for the disallowance of such
agreements if contrary to the public interest, the 1965 Policy was
relatively weak. Amendments to the Act to address resale price
maintenance matters were passed in 1971, while a new Trade
Practices Act implemented by the Whitlam Government in 1974. The
1974 Act took a new approach to competition law, based on
prohibition rather than administrative investigation of conduct; it
also provided for authorisation of conduct in the public interest.
Over following years, considerable ongoing fine tuning of the Act
took place.
The mid 1970s and the 1980s saw some major Government
initiatives to enhance national productivity through liberalisation
of the economy such as the across the board tariff cuts of 1973,
the floating of the dollar (1983) and the elimination of foreign
exchange controls. At industry level, initiatives such as the
corporatisation of government business enterprise and progressive
deregulation in the transport and telecommunications sectors became
keystones of the so-called 'microeconomic reform programs' of both
Commonwealth and State and Territory Governments.
As the microeconomic reform programs gathered pace into the
1990s, it became increasingly evident that the limited purview of
the existing Federal competition policy arrangements would severely
constrain the scope for further economic reform and the development
of a competitive national economy within an increasingly
competitive international setting. This was reflected in
Prime Minister Hawke's 12 March 1991 Ministerial Statement,
Building a Competitive Australia, where Mr Hawke observed:-
The Trade Practices Act is our principal legislative weapon to
ensure consumers get the best deal from competition. But there are
many areas of the Australian economy today that are immune from
that Act: some Commonwealth enterprises, State public sector
businesses, and significant areas of the private sector, including
the professions.
This patchwork coverage reflects historical and constitutional
factors, not economic efficiencies; it is another important
instance of the way we operate as six economies, rather than one.
The benefits for the consumer of expanding the scope of the Trade
Practices Act could be immense: potentially lower professional
fees, cheaper road and rail fares, cheaper electricity.
The Commonwealth's move to foster a more national approach to
competition policy was one of the elements of its broad ranging
'new federalism' initiative announced by the Prime Minister on 19
July 1990.
National Press Club Address 19 July 1990. Under this
initiative, the Commonwealth sought to form a closer partnership
between the three tiers of government - Commonwealth, State and
local - by addressing 'sensible, practicable steps to get better
cooperation within the framework of the Federal Constitution as it
stands'.
A series of Special Premiers Conferences held over subsequent
years were used to advance the new federalism agenda in public
policy areas as diverse as Federal financial relations, government
service delivery and social justice, inter-governmental cooperation
on environmental protection and enhancing national efficiency.
Thus, the development of the NCP process fitted consistently
within this broader public policy direction; although the
Commonwealth led the process, its drew heavily on the coordination
and consultation machinery provided by the Special Premiers
Conferences and the regular meetings of the Council of Australian
Governments (COAG) to ensure broad, common agreement on its scope
and direction.
The
1991 Competitive Australia Statement referred to above marked a
turning point in the emergence of the NCP. In the Statement, Mr
Hawke indicated that he had initiated a process whereby the States
and the Commonwealth would undertake an urgent examination of all
that could be done to widen the ambit of the Trade Practices Act to
bring the excluded areas of economic enterprise within the scope of
a national framework of competition policy and law.
At a Special Premiers' Conference held in July 1991, Government
leaders and representatives agreed that a national approach to
competition policy be considered to ensure that consumers benefit
fully from the structural adjustment initiatives and other reform
programs then under way.
Communique Special Premiers' Conference, Sydney, 30-31 July
1991. They agreed competitive markets would achieve a more
efficient allocation of resources within the economy and noted the
role national competition policy could play in underpinning the
effective functioning of those markets.
The meeting therefore agreed that a Working Group of Officials,
chaired by the Commonwealth, would review the appropriateness of
current competition policy, including the application of the Trade
Practices Act, to the following areas within Commonwealth, State
and Territory jurisdictions: (1) Government Trading Enterprises;
(2) Marketing Authorities; (3) Unincorporated bodies; and (4)
Government procurement by Commonwealth, State Territory and local
governments.
Leaders and representatives agreed that the Working Group should
establish the nature of, and reasons for, the exclusions identified
in each case and prepare papers for the November 1991 special
Premiers' Conference containing recommendations on whether the
Trade Practices Act's application should be extended to the above
areas and whether alternative approaches within the scope of a
national framework of competition policy and law might be more
effective.
Subsequently a meeting of the Premiers and Chief Ministers on
21-22 November 1991 endorsed the need for a national competition
policy and agreed to the establishment of an independent
review of the Trade Practices Act to assess its capacity to secure
a national competition policy and to identify alternative models
for regulating market behaviour.
Communique of the Premiers and Chief Ministers Meeting, Adelaide
21-22 November 1991. This endorsement was in the context of
deliberations on related inter-governmental policy matters
including the mutual recognition of standards, the regulation of
non bank financial institutions, nationally uniform road rules, a
national electricity grid protocol and the reform of State
Government trading enterprises.
Shortly after taking on the Prime Ministership in December 1991,
the Hon Paul Keating MP tabled the major Ministerial Statement,
One Nation 26 February 1992; this foreshadowed the
prominence which the Commonwealth would give to competition policy
as one of seven elements of its economic and social strategy for
the 1990s
On 4 October 1992, the Prime Minister, Mr Keating announced the
establishment of a major independent inquiry into competition
policy in Australia, thus putting into effect the decision of Heads
of Australian Governments of the previous year; see the
Statement by the Prime Minister on the National Competition Policy
and attached Terms of Reference of 4 October 1992. The terms of
reference were drawn up in consultation with the States and
Territories and gave special emphasis on areas outside the Trade
Practices Act. The inquiry would be chaired by Professor Fred
Hilmer, Dean of the Australian Graduate School of Management in the
University of New South Wales, who would be joined by Mr Geoff
Taperell, a partner in the law firm of Baker & McKenzie and by
Mr Mark Rayner, Group Executive, CRA Ltd.
The Inquiry received written submissions from 150 organisations
and individuals from around Australia and the team consulted widely
with senior representatives of Australian Governments as well as
many industry, professional, trade union, consumer and other
organisations.
The Hilmer Committee's report was delivered to the Heads of
Government on 25 August 1993; it advocated six policy
proposals:
- extending the reach of the Trade
Practices Act 1974 (TPA) to unincorporated businesses and State
and Territory government businesses so that the competitive conduct
rules ( contained in Part IV of the Act) apply to all business
activity in Australia
- provision for third party access to nationally significant
infrastructure
- introduction of competitive neutrality so that government
businesses do not enjoy unfair advantages when competing with
private businesses
- restructuring of public sector monopoly businesses to increase
competition; .review of all laws which restrict competition
and
- extending prices surveillance arrangements to State and
Territory government businesses to deal with those circumstances
where all other competition policy reforms prove inadequate.
A more detailed overview and assessment of the report proposals
is available at the Parliamentary Research Paper ‘National
Competition Policy: Overview and Assessment’ while a
short layperson's introduction is at
Hilmer, the National Competition Policy: A Layperson’s
Introduction.
Following the public release of the report, its recommendations
were widely discussed and reviewed. At the time, Professor Hilmer
observed that his Committee's recommendations were shaped by its
views on what constitutes competition policy and the need to
develop such a policy in a manner consistent with Australia's
Federal system. A paper released by Professor Hilmer at the time,
The Bases and Impact of Competition Policy, sets out the
underpinning bases of the Committee's report. In this paper,
Professor Hilmer states that his report rested on three main
propositions:-
- that competition policy covers a broad set of laws, policies
and government actions that should be seen as an integrated
whole
- the main elements of competition policy dealt with by the
review were the processes, institutions and broad principles that
would generate specific guidelines for various sectors of the
economy
- the recommended processes and institutions leave much of
competition policy squarely in the political domain.
At its third meeting held on 25 February 1994, COAG agreed on
the need to accelerate and broaden progress on micro-economic
reform to support higher economic and employment growth on a
sustainable basis. Accordingly, it agreed to pursue a more
extensive national micro-economic reform agenda and to establish a
standing committee of senior officials to manage this continuing
agenda of micro-economic reform. The Working Group was directed to
report to the Council with detailed proposals for further
reform.
In agreeing to the principles of the competition policy
articulated in the Hilmer Report, COAG adopted a range of
initiatives as set out in
the Communique of the Council of Australian Governments, Hobart, 25
February 1994 including agreement that
- any recommendation or legislation arising from the Hilmer
Report being applicable to all bodies, including Commonwealth and
State government agencies and authorities
- that the Trade Practices Commission and the Prices Surveillance
Authority be merged to form the basis for the Australian
Competition Commission. The Australian Competition Commission would
also have new powers. Commonwealth, State and Territory Governments
are to develop the detailed arrangements for the establishment of
this body, including the process for State and Territory
participation in the appointments process;
- the Commonwealth would consider providing financial assistance
to the States and Territories for loss of monopoly rents and the
process for managing adjustment.
COAG's fourth meeting was held in Darwin in August 1994.
The Communique of this 19 August 1994 meeting refers to reform
commitments entered into by participating governments
including:
- the revision of the conduct rules of trade practices
legislation and their extension to cover State and local government
business enterprises and unincorporated businesses;
- the application by individual jurisdictions of agreed
principles on structural reform of public monopolies, competitive
neutrality between the public and private sector where they
compete, and a program of review of regulations restricting
competition;
- the establishment in each jurisdiction of a system to carry out
surveillance of prices charged by utilities and other corporations
with high levels of monopoly power and a regime to provide access
to essential facilities such as electricity grids, gas pipelines,
airports, rail networks, postal delivery services, communication
channels and seaports; and
- the establishment of the Australian Competition Commission and
the Australian Competition Council to exercise recommendatory
powers in relation to access and pricing surveillance issues and
advisory powers on matters determined by governments.
The Darwin meeting also agreed to release for public comment
relevant draft legislation, a draft Inter-governmental Conduct Code
Agreement and a draft Inter-governmental Competition Principles
Agreement with a view to undertaking public consultations and
finalising the legislative package at Council's February 1995
meeting with the aim of bringing the new arrangements into effect
on 1 July 1995.
Significantly, COAG determined that all Governments should share
the benefits to economic growth and revenue from Hilmer and related
reforms to which they have contributed. Accordingly it agreed that
the Industry Commission would undertake an assessment of The
Growth and Revenue Implications of Hilmer and Related Reforms
on a brief provided by Heads of the Commonwealth Treasury. This
would be used to assist the Council in determining the increase in
the Commonwealth revenue which might be expected from these reforms
and the appropriate percentage share which would accrue to the
States, Territories and Local Government. Recognising the important
implications of NCP for local government, the Council agreed that
the Australian Local Government Association would participate in
the further consultations on competition policy.
In Apri1 1995, COAG agreed to the National Competition Policy
package of measures to implement the Hilmer proposals and to meet
previous reform commitments in the areas of electricity, gas, water
and road transport. The package consisted of
The Competition Policy Reform Act 1995 amended the
competitive conduct rules (part IV) of the TPA and extended their
coverage to State, Territory and local government businesses and
unincorporated bodies. It also created a Part IlIA of the TPA to
provide a national regime for access to the services provided by
nationally significant infrastructure facilities and amended the
Prices
Surveillance Act 1983 to extend prices oversight arrangements
to State and Territory business enterprises.
In addition, the Competition Policy Reform Act 1995
created two new institutions to oversee the implementation of the
competition policy package. The Australian Competition and Consumer
Commission (ACCC) was created through the merger of the former
Trade Practices Commission and Prices Surveillance Authority with
the principal function of enforcing the TPA. The National
Competition Council (NCC) was established on 6 November 1995
pursuant to section 29A of the TPA as an independent advisory body
for all Australian governments on National Competition Policy
issues.
As part of the implementation of the National Competition
Policy, three agreements were signed by all heads of
government:
- the Conduct Code Agreement which sets out the basis
for extending the coverage of the TPA and consultative processes
for amendments to the competition laws of the Commonwealth, States
and Territories and for appointments to the ACCC
- the Competition Principles Agreement (CPA) which sets
out the principles agreed by governments in relation to prices
oversight, structural reform of public monopolies, review of
anti-competitive legislation and regulation, third party access to
services provided by essential facilities, the elimination of net
competitive advantages enjoyed by government businesses where they
compete with the private sector, and the application of these
principles to local government. It also establishes consultative
arrangements for defining ,appointments to, and deciding the work
program the NCC, and
- the Agreement to Implement the National Competition Policy
and Related Reforms (the Implementation Agreement) which sets
out the conditions for provision of financial transfers from the
Commonwealth to the States and Territories and the role and
functions of the NCC in assessing States' and Territories' progress
on the reforms and advising the Commonwealth Treasurer on
eligibility for the competition payments.
A range of processes aimed at promoting competition were set in
train by the competition policy agreements. For example,
governments agreed to examine the structure of publicly-owned
monopolies before introducing competition to a sector traditionally
supplied by a public monopoly and before privatising a public
monopoly.
The
NCP's Institutional Framework
The Australian
Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) was formed on 6
November 1995 by the merger of the Trade Practices Commission and
the Prices Surveillance: Authority. Its formation was an important
step in the implementation of the national competition policy
reform program agreed by the Council of Australian Governments.
The Commission's roles
An independent statutory authority, the Commission administers
the Trade
Practices Act 1974 (TPA) and the Prices
Surveillance Act 1983 and has additional responsibilities under
other legislation. The objective of the TPA, as set out in the
legislation, is to enhance the welfare of Australians through the
promotion of competition and fair trading and provision for
consumer protection. Under the national competition policy reform
program, the TPA has been amended so that, together with relevant
State Territory legislation, its prohibitions of anti-competitive
conduct apply to virtually all businesses in Australia.
In broad terms, the TPA covers anti-competitive and unfair
market practices, mergers or acquisitions of companies, product
safety/liability and third party access to facilities of national
significance. The Commission is the only national agency dealing
generally with competition matters and the only agency with
responsibility for enforcement of the TPA and the associated
State/Territory legislation.
Under the Prices Surveillance Act, the Commission has
three pricing functions; to vet the proposed price rises of any
business organisation placed under prices surveillance, (b) to hold
inquiries into pricing practices and related matters and to report
the findings to the responsible Commonwealth Minister and (c) to
monitor prices, costs and profits of an industry or business and to
report the results to the Minister.
The Commission's consumer protection work complements that of
State and Territory consumer affairs agencies, which administer the
mirror legislation of their jurisdictions, and the Consumer Affairs
Division of Treasury.
The ACCC has a network of offices in all capital cities as well
as Townsville and Tamworth to handle public complaints and
inquiries. ACCC staff provide guidance to business and consumers on
their rights and obligations under the law, but do not give legal
advice
The Commissioners
The full time Commissioners are:-
Graeme Samuel will act as chairman of
the ACCC for a year from July 1, 2003. A Company Director and a
co-founder of Grant Samuel & Associates, corporate advisers.
From 1981 to 1986 he was Executive Director of Macquarie Bank Ltd
in charge of its Victorian operations and a Director of its
Corporate Services Division. His career as a banker was preceded by
12 years as a partner of leading Melbourne law firm, Phillips Fox
& Masel. He was the co-author of a text on the Securities
Industry Code and has published numerous papers and journal
articles on business affairs. Graeme Samuel currently holds several
other offices including: Chairman of Opera Australia; Chairman of
Melbourne & Olympic Parks Trust; Commissioner of the Australian
Football League; member of the Docklands Authority and Director of
Thakral Holdings Limited. He attended Wesley College, Melbourne,
and subsequently obtained a Bachelor of Laws from Melbourne
University and a Master of Laws from Monash University.
Mr Sitesh Bhojani has been a full-time
member of the ACCC since November 1995. Before then he was a
barrister with a general commercial and civil litigation practice
at the independent bar in Western Australia. In 1994 he was
appointed an Associate Commissioner of the Trade Practices
Commission. He was Deputy Chairman of the Law Council of Australia,
Business Law Section’s Trade Practices Committee. He holds a
Bachelor of Science (Monash) and Bachelor of Laws (Monash). In 1986
he was admitted as a barrister and solicitor in Victoria and
Western Australia. He has also tutored in trade practices law at
the University of Western Australia. Mr Bhojani’s appointment
is until 10 November 2003.
Mr Ross Jones was appointed as a
Commissioner of the ACCC in June 1999. He is an economist and
before his appointment was Senior Lecturer in Economics at the
University of Technology, Sydney. He has lectured in industrial
organisation and micro-economic policy at universities in Australia
and overseas. Mr Jones’ appointment is until 14 June
2004.
Mr John Martin was Executive Director
of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry from 1989 until
his appointment to the ACCC in June 1999. In his position at ACCI
he represented business interests to the Commonwealth Government
and was responsible for developing business policies and programs,
particularly as they affected small and medium enterprises. Earlier
in his career he was a policy adviser and program manager with the
Commonwealth Treasury and the Department of Industry. He holds an
economics degree from the Australian National University. Mr
Martin’s appointment is until 6 June 2004.
Ms Jennifer McNeill was a partner with
the law firm Blake Dawson Waldron before her appointment to the
ACCC in July 2002. Ms McNeill is a NSW Law Society Accredited
Specialist in Litigation and an accredited Mediator. Her
appointment with the ACCC is until July 2007.
Mr Ed Willett was the Executive
Director of the National Competition Council (NCC) before his
appointment in January 2003. Mr Willett previously served as an
Assistant Commissioner with the Industry Commission, in a public
sector career which has included positions in the Department of
Industry Science and Technology, the Department of Defence and the
New Zealand Ministry of External Relations and Trade. His
Appointment with the ACCC is until January 2008
The Associate members of the ACCC are:-
Ms Teresa Handicott, a partner with
Corrs Chambers Westgarth. She was appointed an Associate
Commissioner of the Trade Practices Commission in 1994 and
Associate Commissioner of the ACCC in November 1995. She is a
director of CS Energy Limited, and Member, Company Committee,
Queensland Law Society and Law Council of Australia. Ms
Handicott’s appointment is until 3 June 2002.
Ms Yasmin King is a Director of
Flexible Resource, a consultancy practice which focuses on
outsourcing and industry development advisory services particularly
in information technology. She was appointed as an Associate
Commissioner of the ACCC in 1998. Ms King was previously an
economic adviser for the State Government of South Australia during
the establishment and implementation of National Competition
Policy. Before that she held a number of senior positions in the
finance industry. Ms King’s appointment is until 25 October
2001.
Mr Don Watt is a lawyer and company
director. In recent years his major area of legal practice has been
advising the State of Western Australia in relation to various
commercial matters. Mr Watt's appointment is until 3 June 2002.
Mr Warwick Wilkinson is a retired
pharmaceutical company director. From 1992 to 1993 he was a Member
of the Economic Planning and Advisory Council. From June 1999 to
Feburary 2000 he was Chairman of National Competition Policy Review
of Pharmacy appointed by the Council of Australian Governments..Mr
Wilkinson’s appointment is until 3 June 2002.
Professor Douglas Williamson RFD QC
FAIM is the Director of the Centre for Energy and
Resources Law at the Law Faculty, the University of Melbourne. He
was appointed Associate Member of the ACCC in June 1999. He is also
Deputy Chairman of the National Electricity Tribunal, a Member
(part-time) of the National Native Title Tribunal, and a mediator
accredited to the Supreme Court of Victoria. Professor
Williamson’s appointment is until 3 June 2002.
The ex-officio members are:
Mr Paul Baxter, the Senior
Commissioner, ACT Independent Competition and Regulatory
Commission. His appointment is until 30 June 2004.
Professor David Flint is the Chairman
of the Australian Broadcasting Authority. He is an Emeritus
Professor, University of Technology Sydney and Visiting Professor,
Faculty of Law, University of Western Sydney Macarthur; National
President (Australia) of the World Jurists
Association; Chairman of the Executive Council of World Association
of Press Council; and Consulting Editor of the Australian
International Law Journal. Past positions include Chairman,
Australian Press Council; Dean of Law School University of
Technology, Sydney; Convenor/Chairman, Committee Australian Law
Deans; Director of Studies, International Law
Association (Australian and New Zealand branch); and Editor,
Australian International Law News. He holds the following
qualifications: LL.B, LL.M (Sydney); BSc (Ecs) (London); DSU (Paris
2). Professor Flint is a Member of the Order of Australia. In 1991
he won the World Jurists Association’s World Outstanding
Legal Scholar Prize. Professor Flint’s appointment is until 4
October 2004.
Mr Edward John Hall is a Member of the
Board of Consolidated Rutile Ltd and has an appointment until 30
September 2002.
Mr Lew Owens was appointed as the
first full-time Independent Industry Regulator on 1 January 2000,
for a term of six years. His prime responsibilities are to regulate
network and franchise pricing, monitor and enforce service
standards and supply performance, and promote competitive conduct
in the market. His appointment with the ACCC is until January
2006
Dr Thomas Parry is Executive Chairman
of the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal of NSW, has been
appointed until 6 June 2005
Mr Alan Tregilgas was the Northern
Territory’s inaugural part-time Utilities Commissioner. Mr
Tregilgas is appointed until 31 March 2004.
Mr Andrew Reeves is the Commissioner,
Government Prices Oversight Commission, Tasmania, and his
appointment is until 31 December 2001.
Mr Tony Shaw, PSM is the Chairman of
the Australian Communications Authority. Mr Shaw’s
appointment is until 30 June 2002.
Mr Graham Scott was appointed as the
South Australian Independent Pricing and Access Regulator on 2
April 1998 for three years on a parttime basis. Mr Scott is a
Senior Lecturer in Economics in the Faculty of Social Sciences at
Flinders University where he completed a three year term as Head of
the School of Economics. He is Chairman of the SA Local Government
Superannuation Scheme, Unisure Ltd (the workers compensation
insurer for the three SA universities) and of Adelaide Airport Ltd.
He is a board member of Superannuation Scheme for Australian
Universities and Flinders Technologies Pty Ltd (the intellectual
property arm of Flinders University). He was the Deputy Director of
the SA Centre for Economics Study from its establishment in 1984
until 1998 and in that position wrote extensively on the SA
economy. Mr Scott’s other professional interests are in the
area of macro-economics, financial markets and macroeconomic
policy.
Dr John Tamblyn is Victoria’s
Regulator-General responsible for regulation of access and service
performance of the electricity, gas, water and transport utility
industries.Dr Tamblyn’s appointment is until 13 July
2002.
The ACCC reports to the Hon Joe Hockey MP, Minister for
Financial Services and Regulation. The Department of the Treasury
has portfolio responsibility for the Commission. The Minister for
Financial Services & Regulation is responsible for restrictive
trade practices issues, pricing policy and consumer affairs. The
Commission's consumer protection work complements that of State and
Territory consumer affairs agencies, which administer the mirror
legislation of their jurisdictions.
The Council of Australian Governments established the Council in
1995 when its members agreed to implement the National Competition
Policy. The general role of the Council is to assist COAG with the
NCP implementation process. It is a policy advisory body and
provides national oversight of NCP. It does not set reform agendas
or implement reforms itself, this is the responsibility of the
various governments.
Although funded by the Commonwealth, the Council is a national
body, with responsibilities to all Australian governments. As a
statutory body, the Council is also independent of the executive
(political) arm of any government. The Council comprises five
part-time councillors drawn from different business sectors and
parts of Australia. It is supported by a secretariat of around
twenty staff located in Melbourne.
The Council's main specific roles are:-
- The assessment of Governments’ progress in implementing
the competition reforms – and recommendations as to the level
of competition payments. To share the benefits of competition, the
Commonwealth makes substantial financial payments to the States and
Territories provided they make satisfactory progress
First Tranche Assessment ,
Second Tranche Assessment , Third Tranche
Assessment. The provision of advice on the design and coverage
of access rules under the National Access
Regime*.
- Undertaking other projects as requested by a majority of
Australian governments. (These can include reviews and advice
relating to restrictive or anti-competitive legislation, the
structural reform of public monopolies, prices oversight, and
competitive neutrality).
- Undertaking community education and communication in relation
to both specific reform implementation matters and National
Competition Policy generally.
The Councillors
The Councillors are drawn from various parts of Australia and
different industry sectors to provide a range of skills and
experience. Councillors are appointed for a three-year term and the
appointments are made jointly by the Commonwealth,
State and Territory Governments. The Councillors report formally
to the Federal Treasurer and currently comprises five part-time
councillors supported by a secretariat of around twenty staff
located in Melbourne.
Graeme Samuel, President
of the NCC: A Company Director and a co-founder of
Grant Samuel & Associates, corporate advisers. From 1981 to
1986 he was Executive Director of Macquarie Bank Ltd in charge of
its Victorian operations and a Director of its Corporate Services
Division. His career as a banker was preceded by 12 years as a
partner of leading Melbourne law firm, Phillips Fox & Masel. He
was the co-author of a text on the Securities Industry Code and has
published numerous papers and journal articles on business affairs.
Graeme Samuel currently holds several other offices including:
Chairman of Opera Australia; Chairman of Melbourne & Olympic
Parks Trust; Commissioner of the Australian Football League; member
of the Docklands Authority and Director of Thakral Holdings
Limited. He attended Wesley College, Melbourne, and subsequently
obtained a Bachelor of Laws from Melbourne University and a Master
of Laws from Monash University.
David Crawford is the Chairman of the
Westralia Airports Corporation Pty Ltd and Chairman of Export
Grains Centre Ltd. He is a member of Transfield Pty Ltd (WA
Advisory Board), Chairman of John Curtin International Institute
(Board of Advisors), member of the University Graduate School of
Business (Board of Advisors), WA Trade Advisory Council and the WA
Government Treasury Advisory Group.
Robert Fitzgerald practised as a
commercial and corporate solicitor for twenty years, having been
engaged by the legal firms of C R Fieldhouse, Clayton Utz and
principal of his own commercial legal practice. He was also engaged
as a senior management consultant with Horwath (NSW) Accountants,
specialising in licensing and franchising areas.
Dr Doug McTaggart is currently the
Chief Executive Officer of the Queensland Investment Corporation.
Between 1996 and 1998 he was the Under Treasurer and Under
Secretary of the Queensland Department of Treasury, a Director of
the Queensland Office of Financial Supervision, Director of the
Queensland Treasury Corporation, and the Chairman of QSuper Board
of Trustees. Between 1983 and 1996 Dr McTaggart held various
academic positions as an economist. He holds an Honours Degree in
Economics from the Australian National University, and a Masters
Degree and PhD from the University of Chicago.
Dr Wendy Craik is currently the Chief
Executive Officer of Earth Sanctuaries Ltd, Chair of the Australian
Fisheries Management Authority, a Council Member of the Australian
Institute of Marine Science and a Board Member of the Cooperative
Research Centres for Coastal Resources, the Great Barrier Reef
Research Foundation and the Foundation for Rural and Regional
Renewal. Between 1995 and 2000 Dr Craik was the Executive Director
of the National Farmers’ Federation. Dr Craik holds an
Honours Degree in Science from the Australian National University,
a PhD in Zoology from the University of British Columbia and a
Graduate Diploma of Management from the Capricornia Institute of
Advanced Education.
The Australian Competition Tribunal is a quasi-judicial review
body constituted under the Trade Practices Act 1974. It was
originally established under the Trade Practices Act 1965
and continues under the Trade Practices Act 1974 ("the
Act"). Prior to 6 November 1995, the Tribunal was known as the
Trade Practices Tribunal. Prior to November 1995, it was known as
the Trade Practices Tribunal, a name dating from its establishment
in 1965.
The Tribunal is a review body. A review by the Tribunal is a
re-hearing or a re-consideration of a matter and it may perform all
the functions and exercise all the powers of the original
decision-maker for the purposes of review. It can affirm, set aside
or vary the decision.
Thus, the Tribunal's principal functions are:-
- to review determinations of the Australian Competition and
Consumer Commission in relation to applications for, and
revocations of, authorisations of conduct and arrangements that
would otherwise contravene provisions of the Act, and in relation
to notices given by the Commission regarding exclusive dealing, and
to review decisions of the Minister or the Commission in relation
to third party access to significant infrastructure
facilities.
Composition of the Tribunal
- The Tribunal consists of a President and such number of Deputy
Presidents and other members as are appointed by the
Governor-General. A presidential member must be a judge of a
federal court.
- Other members must have knowledge of or experience in industry,
commerce, economics, law or public administration.
- For the purpose of hearing and determining proceedings, the
Tribunal is constituted by a presidential member and two
non-presidential members. Currently, all presidential members are
Judges of the Federal Court of Australia.
The Tribunal has no staff or physical resources of its own. The
funds appropriated by the Parliament for the purposes of the
Tribunal are managed by the Federal Court. Registry services and
administrative support for the Tribunal are provided by the staff
of the Federal Court.
Tribunal Members
The Hon. Justice J von Doussa President
The Hon. Justice A Goldberg Deputy President
The Hon. Justice P Hely Deputy President
Mr R C Davey Member
Prof. R C Duncan Member
Mr G Latta Member
Dr M J Messenger Member
Assoc. Prof. D Round Member
Miss M M Starrs Member
Dr J E Walker Member
This E-Brief is intended to provide a basic introduction to key
sources which trace the evolution of the NCP in Australia and the
key agencies responsible for its implementation. However the
detailed documentation associated with the implementation of NCP is
not referred to here nor are the substantial information sources
and policy documentation specific to individual industries and
jurisdictions. Fortunately much of this material is readily
available on the internet or can be obtained in hard copy format by
approaching the relevant State, Territory or Commonwealth
agencies.
For copyright reasons some linked items are only
available to Members of Parliament.
Back to top
|