Competition and Consumer Legislation Amendment Bill 2010
Senate Inquiry into Competition and Consumer Legislation Amendment Bill 2010
Inquiry home page
(including public submissions)
Submissions were due by 4 June
The Bill
Introduced 27 May 2010
Passed House: 24 June
Lapsed: 28 September at end of Parliament
About this Review
The Bill proposes two key changes to Australia's merger laws:
1. Removing the requirement that a market, for purposes of the merger provision, be a ‘substantial’ market, by removing the word substantial from subsection 50(6)
2. replacing the words ‘a market’ in section 50(1) with ‘any market’
The bill also proposed amendments to unconscionable conduct provisions.
The Government argued that the first amendment would enable consideration of acquisitions in local markets (including creeping acquisitions). The second amendment would facilitate ’consideration of multiple markets when assessing mergers'.
Review recommendations
The majority of the Committee supported the proposed amendments. At para 2.46 they stated: "The committee supports the government's proposed amendments to section 50 of the TPA. While the amendments may seem fairly minor points of clarification, it is important that the regulator, the courts and the public at large understand that the ACCC can consider a local market in their assessment of section 50."
