When businesses take advantage of their market power, everyday Australians feel the squeeze –at the checkout and through the supply chain. 

We have just two major supermarkets, two major airlines, four big banks. Coles and Woolworths collectively control two-thirds of the grocery sector and made more than $1 billion in after-tax profits last financial year.  While families struggle to make ends meet, the four big banks made more than $40 billion. 

When there isn’t enough competition, big corporations can hike their prices because they know they have the upper hand. That’s bad for customers, bad for farmers, and bad for the economy.  

Australia’s current laws aren’t strong enough to break up big corporations when they abuse their power. Big business won’t do the right thing for consumers unless there are consequences.  

The major parties won’t stand up to the supermarket giants. For years, they’ve put corporate interests before regular people, and let the big supermarkets gain huge power and influence. They make empty promises to strengthen the law but have failed to deliver.   

My plan will give the ACCC broad divestiture powers to break up big companies when they are abusing their power, without carve outs.  

We want successful businesses in Australia, but when bigger and bigger profits come at the expense of fairness, something needs to change.  

Under the major supermarket duopoly we’ve seen prices go up and up, and the size of what we buy go down.  

A new mandatory code of conduct is coming into effect for the grocery sector, but there is no independent watchdog in place to uphold the code and proactively address breaches.  

The current model still largely enables the supermarkets to select their own umpire. These are the supermarkets we already know have told us products are “on special” when they are more expensive than they were months ago, and that use their size when negotiating with farmers. It’s akin to marking your own homework and I think will end up being ineffective and exploited. 

We need a tough independent watchdog to keep the grocery giants in line. 

A Supermarket Ombudsman is necessary to regulate the operation of the Food and Grocery Code of Conduct, with powers to create binding determinations, issue infringement notices and refer investigations to the ACCC for court action. 

An independent Supermarket Ombudsman would hear complaints directly from consumers and suppliers and have tools to take quick and effective action when necessary.

The high cost of living is making life tough for people right across Indi, and energy bills are one of the biggest expenses in the home budget.  

One in three Australian households have already taken control of their energy by installing rooftop solar, reducing their power bills and emissions. If they could store the energy they produce, they could save even more, but right now the price is out of reach for many people, with only approximately 3% of Australian households benefitting from a home battery. 

Unfortunately, the market price for home batteries means they are still unaffordable for many people. But instead of paying thousands of dollars on expensive power bills every year, people would instantly benefit from a home battery attached to their rooftop solar.  

Solar Feed-In-Tariffs have dropped to almost nothing. Energy companies are making record profits while regular people struggle to pay their bills or deal with blackouts due to problems with our ageing power grid. They even want to charge people for the excess solar they produce.  

Home batteries harness the full benefit of rooftop solar, storing energy to use when the sun goes down. Since energy bills are one of the biggest household costs, this is a simple way to help people lower their bills and use clean energy.  

My plan will enable all families to cut down on their energy costs without paying upfront by offering interest-free loans for home batteries. Under the protection of the established Household Energy Upgrade Fund, loans would be secured against the property title and repaid voluntarily over the life of the loan, or at the sale of the property.

Rising energy costs are one of the biggest challenges facing small businesses. With the cost-of-living so high, small-business owners need help to invest in energy efficient solutions that lower their power bills and help them improve their operations for the long term.  

Under my plan, small and medium businesses with turnover up to $50 million, and all primary producers would be eligible for a total tax deduction up to $30,000 for three years for eligible technology and assets that make their businesses more energy efficient. 

This measure will help small-business owners – many who are parents, employers and community leaders – who work hard and create jobs in our towns. It will help them stay competitive, which helps our local economy.