Budget 2009–10: Legal issues and the Attorney-General's portfolio
Unit pricing
PaoYi Tan
The Government has announced funding of $2.2 million over
two years to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) to
establish a unit pricing code for retail supermarkets.[1]
Unit pricing refers to the system of pricing goods on the
basis of a cost per unit of measure. It requires supermarket retailers to
display prices of products according to cost per unit (for example, the cost
per 100 grams or per litre). This is in addition to displaying the total
retail price of a product. For example, unit pricing is currently used in
Australia for certain prescribed products under State and Territory legislation,
including loose fresh produce (such as fruit and vegetables) and some meat and
cheese products. [2]
On 15 May 2008 Senator Fielding of the Family First Party
introduced the Unit Pricing (Easy comparison of grocery prices) Bill 2008 into
the Senate. The Bill was referred to the Standing Committee on Economics which
tabled its report on 1 September 2008. The majority recommended that the Bill
not be passed.[3]
The Committee noted that the Australian Government had made a commitment to
consider the best way to introduce a mandatory nationally-consistent unit
pricing scheme.[4]
Subsequently, on 23 March 2009 the Minister for Competition
Policy and Consumer Affairs, Chris Bowen, released a draft industry code ‘to
implement a nationally-consistent unit pricing scheme’.[5] The code will take over the current State and Territory system of unit pricing,
and expand it to include a wider range of grocery items, such as pre-packaged
goods. It will be prescribed by the Trade Practices (Industry Codes – Unit
Pricing) Regulations 2009 under section 51AE of the Trade Practices
Act 1974, which are due to commence on 1 July 2009. It is anticipated that
operation of the code will commence on 1 December 2009.[6]
The ACCC’s role will be to ‘provide industry and consumers
with educative measures and be the agency responsible for the enforcement of
the code’.[7]
[1]. Australian Government, Budget
measures: budget paper no. 2: 2009–10, p. 387.
[2]. For example, see section 26
of the Trade Measurement Act 1991 (ACT) or section 26 of the Trade
Measurement Act 1995 (VIC).
[3]. Senate Standing Committee on
Economics, ‘Unit Pricing (Easy comparison of grocery prices) Bill 2008’,
Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra, 1 September 2008, p. 25, viewed 18 May
2009 http://www.aph.gov.au/senate/committee/economics_ctte/unit_pricing_08/report/index.htm
[4]. Senate
Standing Committee on Economics, p. 25.
[5]. C Bowen, (Minister for
Competition Policy and Consumer Affairs), Draft code brings national unit
pricing scheme one step closer, media release, Canberra, 23 March 2009,
viewed 14 May 2009 http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query%3DId%3A%22media%2Fpressrel%2FWT3T6%22
[6]. C Bowen, (Minister for Competition
Policy and Consumer Affairs), Australian consumers to save with unit pricing,
media release, Canberra, 8 January 2009, viewed 14 May 2009 http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22media%2Fpressrel%2FU8JS6%22
[7] C Bowen, Australian
consumers to save with unit pricing.
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