Steve Fielding (Victoria, Family First Party) Share this | Hansard source

I will have to respond to that, to a certain extent. If the minister were to read that the substantial financial power was not on its own but it was with regard to whether it has the purpose—we will leave out the effect for the moment—of substantially lessening competition in that market, it is not just financial power that, all of a sudden, makes you a target; not at all. In actual fact, the government’s amendment works on substantial share of market. It does not say ‘power in a market’; it works on percentage of share of a market, so you have got to look at those issues in combination, not in isolation, as has seemed to be done there. Item (3) says:

... the Court may have regard to:

(a)

whether the goods or services are offered at a price less than their relevant cost; and

(b)

the price for which competitors of the corporation are offering the same goods or services; and

(c)

the period of time for which the goods or services are offered at the relevant price; and

(d)

whether the corporation is offering the same goods or services in other markets for higher prices; and

(e)

the extent of competition in the market; and

(f)

the reasons for its conduct.

This could be taken slightly out of context. We can debate this ad nauseam, but I will just leave it at that. There is obviously going to be disagreement in views on the issue. I put the amendments before the Senate.

Question negatived.