Katy Gallagher (ACT, Australian Labor Party, Minister for the Public Service) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Ghosh for the question and for focusing on the needs of his constituents in the great state of WA. Senator Ghosh is right to point out that, with all the measures that this government has put in place to help with those cost-of-living pressures, we know that people are doing it tough and we know particularly—in reference to the last part of Senator Ghosh's question—how many Australians are feeling about the price of groceries at the moment. We've been making it clear through the work that the Prime Minister has been leading, on cracking down on supermarkets and resourcing the ACCC, just how seriously we take any suggestion of shonky behaviour that will cost Australian families at the checkout.

The Albanese government will introduce legislation that will see supermarkets face multimillion-dollar penalties for breaches of the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct. This is part of our broader competition policy agenda to get farmers and families a fair go. The bill provides that maximum fines under the food and grocery code will be at least $10 million. These are serious penalties. They are the highest corporate penalties under any industry code. Regulations to make the new mandatory Food and Grocery Code of Conduct will be made this year, as I advised Senator Pocock yesterday, with the code coming into force from 1 April 2025. The new code will help ensure that supermarkets are as competitive as they can be so Australians get the best prices possible.

This is all part of our broader competition policy agenda, which is cracking down on shrinkflation by strengthening the unit pricing code to make it easier for Australians to make accurate and timely price comparisons, working with states and territories to reform planning and zoning regulations, ensuring the ACCC will be notified of every single merger in the supermarket sector in the biggest strengthening of merger reform in half a century and providing the ACCC with— (Time expired)