Supermarket remedies won’t lead to better service, says BRC

Following the commission's Remedies Working Papers published this afternoon, BRC chief Stephen Robertson said intense competition between supermarkets was continuing to keep shop prices down, making a major contribution to minimising overall inflation, as well as bringing consumers choice and innovation.

What was needed was more competition, not less, said the BRC.

Robertson added: “What is this endless enquiry achieving? The Commission accepts healthy competition is delivering for consumers. That is not in dispute. These proposals are peripheral and will not lead to customers being served better.

“This is the third major investigation into the sector since 2000. They are costly and time consuming. It's time retailers were allowed to get on with delivering for customers.”

On strengthening the supplier code and introducing an ombudsman, Robertson said: “The Commission searched hard but found no evidence of systematic failure in supermarkets' relationships with suppliers. It's not clear what need there is for another bureaucratic layer.

“The voluntary supplier code, which is currently compulsory for the “big four” supermarkets, was launched in 2002. It was, and still is, a sensible attempt to set down what is and is not permissible behaviour but suppliers have not made use of it. Despite critics' claims, the commission did not find that was because suppliers are afraid of retaliation.

“Abuse has not been found because supermarket/supplier relationships are overwhelmingly mutually beneficial and built on trust. Creating new channels for complaint would do nothing but pile on extra costs which have to be met from somewhere.”

On new local authority planning powers, Robertson said: “The idea that new shops are forced on unwilling residents at the whim of retailers is nonsense. Developments are subject to community consultations and decisions are ultimately taken by a planning committee of local councillors.

“The Commission rightly recognises that customers are best served by a planning system that maximises choice. If customers don't want a store they will not use it and it will fail. A speedier more predictable planning system is in customers' interests; expecting politicians to assess markets is not.

“The OFT and local authorities have no experience in assessing competition in local markets. Giving either power to assess the competition effects of planning applications would add another tier of bureaucracy at a time when Government is trying to simplify the planning regime.”