ACCC grants interim authorisation to Construction Materials Producers Association

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has granted interim authorisation* for the Construction Materials Producers Association to develop and publish a standard form contract for its members to be able to use as a starting point for negotiating contracts with owner drivers.

"The ACCC considered that providing interim authorisation to the Owner Driver contract may assist CMPA members and their contracted owner drivers to comply with certain requirements contained in the Victorian Owner Drivers and Forestry Contractors Act 2005," ACCC Chairman, Mr Graeme Samuel, said today. "The ACCC notes that the application was received on 5 April 2007 and had the application been lodged earlier it would have removed the need for urgency."

The ACCC has also taken account of the absence of any industry concern raised in relation to the owner driver contract and the fact that the use of the contract is voluntary for all parties.

The ACCC has decided not to grant interim authorisation to the remaining aspects of the CMPA's application to provide a number of other standard form contracts to its members. These other contracts do not have the same degree of urgency. The ACCC will therefore consider them as part of the substantive authorisation.

The ACCC has granted interim authorisation up until the time the final decision on the substantive authorisation is made. 

More information regarding the application is available on the ACCC website, www.accc.gov.au, by following the links Public registers, Authorisations and notifications registers and Authorisations register.

Background

*Interim authorisation allows an applicant to engage the conduct proposed for authorisation as if authorisation had been granted, before the ACCC issues its final decision.  The ACCC will only grant authorisation in special circumstances.