NARGA Chairman, John Cummings, outside Parliament House in Canberra
NARGA represents around 4,500 independent retailers which employ more than 225,000 people throughout Australia. NARGA's membership base is national, covering not only the major cities, but also rural and regional Australia, including many towns where the major supermarket chains are not represented. In these towns the local grocery store is the heart of the community providing vital services and employment opportunities. It is therefore vital that these stores are competitive so as to maintain a vibrant local economy where the money and benefits generated remain in and support the community.
Comparison of factors that affect the ‘greenness’ of both plastic disposable and reusable shopping bags, demonstrating that reusable bags may not be as environmentally friendly as many people believe.
To give affected parties the confidence to bring a complaint of unconscionable conduct to the attention of the regulator they need to be sure that their complaint is taken seriously, that it will be acted on and that they will not be left to the mercy of the aggressor should the regulator decide to investigate but not to act.
The proposed amendment to the Trade Practices Act – the Richmond amendment – strengthens the competition test to be applied under Section 50 of the Act to one of ‘materially lessening competition’ in the general case and, in the case of a corporation that has a substantial share of the market, one of ‘lessening competition’.
NARGA supports a competitive market for goods and services and believes that price discrimination legislation will assist with making the Australian marketplace more competitive.
NARGA submission to the Senate ERC Inquiry identifying problems with several aspects of the GroceryChoice website, including both methodological issues and seemingly arbitrary ‘regions’, as well the compliance costs to be borne by businesses and passed on to consumers.
Sustainability involves the optimisation of environmental, economic and social factors. In this balancing act governments need to ensure that community needs are met with optimal use of resources, optimal environmental impact at lowest community cost.
Calls for a container deposit tax approach to the recovery for recycling of beverage containers are based on incorrect perceptions regarding need and merit.