The competition regulator has welcomed a call for it to have the power to seek redress on behalf of consumers and small businesses affected by breaches of competition law. 

The Competition Policy Review – chaired by economist and academic Ian Harper and released on March 31 – recommended greater access to justice for businesses affected by anti-competitive practices.

It says admissions of fact made by a person in proceedings brought by the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), together with the findings of fact made by a court, should be available for parties willing to take private action for the harm suffered from anti-competitive conduct.

The ACCC’s response to the report, released last week, says it should also be “given the capacity to seek redress” for victims of competition law breaches.

Its original submission to the review noted section 239 of the Australian Consumer Law allows the ACCC to seek orders from a court for consumer redress, but not damages.

“We consider that it may be useful if this power was also available for [the commission] to seek redress on behalf of identifiable classes of persons, such as consumers or small businesses affected by anti-competitive conduct,” the response paper says.

“For example, the ACCC might seek an order requiring the offending firm to honour existing contracts while offering a discount corresponding to the anti-competitive surcharge to its customers.

“While the review panel did not comment on this proposal for extension of the power of the court to order redress, the ACCC continues to consider it could, in appropriate cases, provide a cost-effective way to provide redress to victims of breaches of the competition law.”

In his covering letter to the review panel, ACCC Chairman Rod Sims says the commission supports the general thrust of the final report’s recommendations.

However, he singles out the panel’s recommendations for changes to cartel conduct provisions and a proposal to separate infrastructure regulation from the ACCC’s competition and enforcement functions as “areas of concern that we hope will be considered”.