☕️ ️ Calls for price gouging ban

Good morning!

Don't forget to hydrate today - it's a big topic in conversation in the TDA office this week after Zara purchased the largest water bottle we have ever seen. It must be at least 4 litres. Don't go full Zara, but nonetheless some water is good for you.

I’ve got 10 seconds

Quote of the day

"What is happening is nothing short of a national tragedy. We are effectively seeing the greatest transfer of wealth from one generation to another in the wrong direction."
Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas has addressed generational wealth inequality at a Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry event. Pallas said young people are contributing to the wealth of older Australians through unfair "national tax and transfer systems."

Stat of the day

9 million
That's the number of vacant homes in Japan, due to the country's declining population. That's enough empty homes for every person in NSW.

Today in history

1988
Australia’s Parliament House was opened in Canberra by Queen Elizabeth II.

I’ve got 30 seconds

Some headlines from this morning:

• The driver involved in last year’s fatal Hunter Valley bus crash has pleaded guilty in a NSW Court. The crash killed 10 people who were returning from a wedding in a bus driven by 59-year-old Brett Andrew Button. Button has pleaded guilty to 35 charges, including ten counts of dangerous driving occasioning death. He was facing multiple counts of manslaughter, but a court has now dropped those charges. Button has been taken into custody in Newcastle and will face court again later this month.

• International students will need to prove they have more savings before being granted a visa to study in Australia under new Government measures. From tomorrow, the minimum required savings to be eligible for a student visa will increase from $24,500 to nearly $30,000. The Government said the update means students will be less likely to be in “financial distress” during their studies in Australia and be less likely to “breach their visa conditions” or become vulnerable to worker exploitation.

Recommendation of the day

I’ve got 1 minute

A Sydney council has voted to ban same-sex parenting books from its libraries

A Western Sydney Council has voted to remove material about same-sex parenting from its library shelves.

The motion was led by Cumberland City Councillor Steve Christou, who claims he received multiple complaints about a local library book on same-sex parenting.

Christou, a former mayor, argued the book goes against his community’s “religious beliefs and family values”.

The NSW Government has now threatened to reduce its funding for libraries in the area, amid calls to reverse the ban.

Cumberland

Cumberland is the local city council for suburbs, including Granville and Regents Park.

Two-thirds of the community speaks a language other than English at home, and 67 languages are spoken across Cumberland.

40% of the community identifies as Christian.

Book ban

Local councillor Steve Christou called for a vote to strip Cumberland’s eight libraries of “same-sex parents books/materials”.

Christou said he received complaints from parents about ‘Same Sex Parents’ by Holly Duhig, a book in the children’s section of a local library.

“Our kids shouldn’t be exposed to sexualised behaviour through same-sex parents books,” Christou said.

The ban passed in a 6-5 vote.

Opposition

Five councillors voted against the ban, including Cumberland’s Labor Mayor Lisa Lake.

Labor Councillor Diane Colman voted against her colleagues. She likened the ban to “old-fashioned book burning”.

“I’m totally against this attempt at censorship,” Colman added.

NSW Government

NSW Arts Minister John Graham told TDA he has written to the Council as the State Government considers withdrawing financial support for Cumberland’s libraries.

“It is up to readers which book they choose from the shelf. It should not be up to local councillors to make that choice for them,” Graham said.

He has instead urged councillors to focus on essential local services like bins and potholes rather than “acting as self-appointed censors”.

I’ve got 2 minutes

An inquiry into supermarkets has called for price gouging to be made illegal

After six months, a Senate inquiry into Australia’s supermarkets has handed down its final report. 

The inquiry investigated claims major supermarkets have been overcharging customers during the cost of living crisis.

It recommended making price gouging, the practice of setting unnecessarily high prices for certain goods, illegal.

Australia’s two major supermarkets, Coles and Woolworths, have rejected claims they’re unfairly increasing the prices of their products.

Inquiry

Coles and Woolies control about two-thirds of Australia’s supermarket sector.

In December, the Greens set up an inquiry with the government's support, following concerns over the supermarket giants’ profits while cost-of-living pressures were increasing.

The inquiry examined supermarkets’ price-setting practices. It interrogated whether the ‘duopoly’ of Coles and Woolworths unfairly used their dominance to increase prices.

The six-month inquiry hosted hearings in multiple locations across Australia, including Orange, Hobart, and Melbourne.

It heard from some farmers and growers who aired concerns about supermarkets’ price-setting practices.

Growers testified they fear “commercial retribution” should they object to Coles and Woolworths' business practices when buying large quantities of fresh produce, such as fruits and vegetables.

The National Farmers Federation said the farmers’ testimony was “troubling”.

Final report

The final report suggested price gouging should be made illegal, meaning companies could face penalties for breaches.

In Australia, businesses can set prices that allow them to profit from goods and services, meaning it isn’t illegal for them to charge a price that customers think is too high.

However, businesses aren’t allowed to mislead or lie about the reasons for their prices or price increases.

The final report also suggested the Government establish a Commission on Prices and Competition, a new agency responsible for overseeing price-setting practices.

The Commission would monitor prices from farms to supermarket shelves.

The report also recommended creating divestiture powers to be used against supermarkets found behaving anti-competitively. This would mean supermarkets could be forced to sell some of their stores if they’re caught engaging in unfair practices like price-gouging.

Greens

Greens Senator Nick McKim has introduced a bill in Parliament that would give courts the power to force companies to divest if they are found to be misusing their market powers.

McKim, who headed the inquiry, also said making price gouging illegal “would mean that corporations couldn’t just arbitrarily increase prices without facing consequences from the courts.”

The Senator claimed the committee’s recommendations would help “bring food prices down” and “break up Australia’s supermarket duopoly”.

Next steps

The Government will now consider the findings before deciding whether to adopt any of the recommendations. It is due to respond within three months.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has previously ruled out introducing divestiture powers, describing them as “Soviet Union” style reforms, where the Government has too much control over the economy.

Opposition

Coalition senators Maria Kovacic and Ross Caldell described the inquiry as a “missed opportunity” to address some of the inequalities faced by suppliers and shoppers.

The Senators support efforts to increase cost transparency but suggested giving the consumer watchdog, the ACCC, extra powers instead of establishing a new agency.

The Coalition did not support calls to introduce divestiture powers.

Supermarkets

Coles and Woolworths have both repeatedly rejected allegations of price gouging.

A spokesperson for Woolworths told TDA the company will “review the report”, while maintaining “grocery inflation is coming down”.

In a statement to TDA, Coles said it would not support recommendations that “are likely to impact the operation of open and free competitive markets in the provision of food and grocery in Australia”.

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Give me some good news

Renewable energy made up a record 30% of global energy generated in 2023.

That’s according to the Global Electricity Review by UK organisation Ember Climate. It reported a 23% increase in solar generation and a 10% increase in wind generation last year. Ember said the world has reached a “turning point” where renewables have started to push fossil generation into decline.

TDA tidbit

If you love Marvel movies, well…. you’re going to be seeing less of them this year.

Disney is looking to take a more ‘quality over quantity’ approach after its shares plunged recently.

The dip is being blamed on a couple of Disney box office letdowns last year, including ‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’. ‘The Little Mermaid’ and ‘Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania’ also failed to meet expected ticket sales.

Disney CEO Bob Iger said: “I’ve been working hard with the studio to reduce output and focus more on quality.”

Despite the shifting focus in its film strategy, Disney's overall profits are up 1%. Disney theme parks and resorts contributed to a $US22.1 billion profit for the first three months of 2024, according to the company’s latest earnings report.

Disney is also starting to make profits on its streaming services, Hulu and Disney+.

Want more from The Daily Aus? Listen to our podcast!

In a major development in the Israel-Hamas war, Israeli forces have entered the southern Gazan city of Rafah, in an operation they say is aimed at destroying Hamas targets. For the 1.4 million people in Rafah, this presents yet another major challenge, with many having nowhere to go. In today’s podcast, we discuss Rafah’s significance in the broader context of the conflict, how the international community has responded, and whether a ceasefire is any closer.

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