The Trade Practices Act 1974 has become a part of general corporate governance issues for business as well as part of the established economic fabric of Australia, the 1998-99 Annual Report of the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission says. The report was tabled in the Federal Parliament today.
The Act has been in force for 25 years and has shown great flexibility, the report says.
"While it has often undergone extensive review and important changes the underlining structure of it and the regulatory bodies have proved durable. The essential Australian model of competition law, which prohibits many forms of anti-competitive conduct but allows authorisation based on public benefit criteria, still stands. On the consumer protection side there is the basic prohibition of misleading and deceptive conduct. That also still stands.
"The Australian model in both a legislative and an institution sense, has become an important model for others, particularly in the Asian-Pacific area".
The report says that while emphasis on various components may vary from time to time, it was a good framework for economies in transition.
The report highlights the work of the ACCC and comments that the essential framework of the Act is now well understood and had general support.
"That support is growing. More industries are expected to become subject to the framework. More access regimes are will be developed for various industries, and there will be changes in the interface between intellectual property law and competition law and between trade and competition policy.
"Major challenges face the consumer protection area, especially in relation to electronic commerce and public utilities".
The report comments that the Act is itself an instrument of economic change "but must also be receptive to change itself. Increasingly, in its administration, international influences are part of the dynamics - but the essential domestic targets and benefits cannot and should not be overlooked.
"Australia has been a leader in competition policy and competition law, and this is due in no small measure to the durability of the Trade Practices Act and the soundness of its institutions. Australias modern competition law has only existed since 1974, with a pilot program from 1965. A lot has happened in that time.
"The US and Canada have had similar laws from around the turn of the century; and the Asian-Pacific countries are now looking at developing legal frameworks.
Success does not happen overnight, yet the Australian system has developed and become part of the economic framework remarkably fast. It has proved very adaptable in a changing world without having to resort to fundamental alterations to its framework.
The report highlights that there has been no decrease in the ACCCs long established areas of enforcement responsibility with work on anti-competitive conduct and consumer protection remaining the highest priorities.
Additionally, the ACCC has an important role in the introduction of the New Tax System, with powers investigate and prosecute profiteering by business during the transition to the new system.
"Global influences on Australian markets continue to have an impact on many areas of the Commissions activities, not least in enforcement work. For competition, international factors are principally reflected in merger proposals considered by the Commission under s.50 of the Act, often as result of arrangements made elsewhere by companies with Australian offshoots. In consumer protection those influences are seen in problems arising from the growth of borderless markets, especially the spread of old scams in new electronic guises".
The report says that when selecting matters for enforcement, the ACCC is influenced by the potential action to have a significant deterrent effect, promote general compliance with the Act and/or achieve redress for interests adversely affected by the conduct in question.
The report comments that the adjudication function continues to expand as a result of new responsibilities arising from the reform of the gas, electricity and telecommunications industries.
The Act has been in force for 25 years and has shown great flexibility, the report says.
"While it has often undergone extensive review and important changes the underlining structure of it and the regulatory bodies have proved durable. The essential Australian model of competition law, which prohibits many forms of anti-competitive conduct but allows authorisation based on public benefit criteria, still stands. On the consumer protection side there is the basic prohibition of misleading and deceptive conduct. That also still stands.
"The Australian model in both a legislative and an institution sense, has become an important model for others, particularly in the Asian-Pacific area".
The report says that while emphasis on various components may vary from time to time, it was a good framework for economies in transition.
The report highlights the work of the ACCC and comments that the essential framework of the Act is now well understood and had general support.
"That support is growing. More industries are expected to become subject to the framework. More access regimes are will be developed for various industries, and there will be changes in the interface between intellectual property law and competition law and between trade and competition policy.
"Major challenges face the consumer protection area, especially in relation to electronic commerce and public utilities".
The report comments that the Act is itself an instrument of economic change "but must also be receptive to change itself. Increasingly, in its administration, international influences are part of the dynamics - but the essential domestic targets and benefits cannot and should not be overlooked.
"Australia has been a leader in competition policy and competition law, and this is due in no small measure to the durability of the Trade Practices Act and the soundness of its institutions. Australias modern competition law has only existed since 1974, with a pilot program from 1965. A lot has happened in that time.
"The US and Canada have had similar laws from around the turn of the century; and the Asian-Pacific countries are now looking at developing legal frameworks.
Success does not happen overnight, yet the Australian system has developed and become part of the economic framework remarkably fast. It has proved very adaptable in a changing world without having to resort to fundamental alterations to its framework.
The report highlights that there has been no decrease in the ACCCs long established areas of enforcement responsibility with work on anti-competitive conduct and consumer protection remaining the highest priorities.
Additionally, the ACCC has an important role in the introduction of the New Tax System, with powers investigate and prosecute profiteering by business during the transition to the new system.
"Global influences on Australian markets continue to have an impact on many areas of the Commissions activities, not least in enforcement work. For competition, international factors are principally reflected in merger proposals considered by the Commission under s.50 of the Act, often as result of arrangements made elsewhere by companies with Australian offshoots. In consumer protection those influences are seen in problems arising from the growth of borderless markets, especially the spread of old scams in new electronic guises".
The report says that when selecting matters for enforcement, the ACCC is influenced by the potential action to have a significant deterrent effect, promote general compliance with the Act and/or achieve redress for interests adversely affected by the conduct in question.
The report comments that the adjudication function continues to expand as a result of new responsibilities arising from the reform of the gas, electricity and telecommunications industries.