ACCC Review of airport reporting guideline

The ACCC is responsible for administering the following provisions for airport monitoring.

Under Part VIIA of the Trade Practices Act 1974 the ACCC is responsible for the monitoring of prices, costs and profits relating to aeronautical services for the five major airports—Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide,—under direction no. 29. Under direction no. 31 the ACCC is responsible for monitoring prices, costs and profits relating to the supply of car parking services for the same five major airports.

Under the Airports Act 1996 the ACCC is responsible for reporting on financial accounts (Part 7 of the Act) and the quality of service monitoring (Part 8 of the Act) for these five airports.

Several changes to the monitoring regime covering airports became effective from the 2007–08 financial year. The ACCC is currently drafting what will become a single airport reporting guideline which will replace the various ACCC reporting guidelines. The new guideline will cover:

1. price monitoring and financial reporting (available, see below)
2. quality of service monitoring (currently in draft stage)
3. monitoring of car parking prices, costs and profits. (not currently available)

In drafting the revised guideline, the ACCC has taken into account the Productivity Commission’s inquiry report Review of price regulation of airport services and the government’s response to that report, as well as discussions with Treasury, the Department of Infrastructure,  Transport, Regional Development and Local Government (DITRDLG) and the airports. The draft guideline also incorporates amendments to the Airports Act 1996 made in April 2007.