Anthony Chisholm (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Labor acknowledges that many farmers experience severe drought conditions, which in some areas have been ongoing for more than seven years. Coles and Woolworths have donated money to assist farmers, as have many other generous Australians. Labor will not support Senator Burston's motion because it fails to acknowledge the current government's failure to implement the recommendations of the ACCC report into the dairy industry. The ACCC noted that neither the existing provisions of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 nor a voluntary code of conduct sufficiently addressed these market failures. Therefore, the ACCC makes eight recommendations for improved transparency and allocation of risk in the commercial relationship between the Australian dairy processors and farmers. Most significantly, the ACCC recommends that a mandatory code of conduct be introduced to address the market failures we have identified.