PRICE-SLASHING SUPERMARKETS NEED INVESTIGATION

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Tue 12th Feb 2008

The UK's largest supermarket chain's further slashing of poultry prices stresses the need for an EU-wide investigation into the rising power of big retailers, according to a local Liberal Democrat MEP.

Liz Lynne MEP, Vice President of the European Parliament's Employment and Social Affairs Committee, recently signed a petition calling for such an investigation, which gained enough MEPs' signatures to trigger a debate in the legislature.

Speaking today Liz Lynne, who is also the LibDem agriculture spokesperson in the European Parliament, said:

"I think we do need to look into whether supermarkets today have too much power, particularly in the prices paid to suppliers for agricultural products.

"Of course it is important that consumers have choice and we are not calling for regulation, but such low prices raise questions about sustainability and whether farmers and other producers are receiving a fair price for their products.

"There is an ongoing UK investigation into supermarket power, but an EU-wide study would enable sharing of data, and later of best practice, between Member-States on how to jointly tackle these issues.

"I was delighted that so many of my colleagues felt as strongly about this issue as I do. The formal parliamentary debate will be a major step towards getting a Europe-wide investigation which could lead to better prices for farmers and better quality produce for consumers."

ENDS

Notes to Editors:

The petition signed by Liz Lynne (text below), known as a Written Declaration, is similar to an Early Day Motion at Westminster. If signed by over half of the 785 MEPs, a Declaration triggers a debate on the given subject in the European Parliament. 439 Members signed this Declaration before it closed for signature on the 31st of January.

Written declaration on investigating and remedying the abuse of power by large supermarkets operating in the European Union

The European Parliament,

A. whereas, throughout the EU, retailing is increasingly dominated by a small number of supermarket chains,

B. whereas these retailers are fast-becoming 'gatekeepers', controlling farmers' and other suppliers' only real access to EU consumers,

C. whereas evidence from across the EU suggests big supermarkets are abusing their buying power to force down prices paid to suppliers (based both within the EU and overseas) to unsustainable levels and impose unfair conditions upon them,

D. whereas such squeezes on suppliers have negative knock-on effects on both quality of employment and environmental protection,

E. whereas consumers potentially face a loss in diversity of products, cultural heritage and retail outlets,

F. whereas some EU countries have introduced national legislation attempting to limit such abuse, yet large supermarkets increasingly operate across national boundaries, making harmonised EU legislation desirable,

1. Calls upon DG Competition to investigate the impacts that concentration of the EU supermarket sector is having on small businesses, suppliers, workers and consumers and, in particular, to assess any abuses of buying power which may follow from such concentration;

2. Requests the Commission to propose appropriate measures, including regulation, to protect consumers, workers and producers from any abuse of dominant position or negative impacts identified in the course of this investigation;

3. Instructs its President to forward this declaration, together with the names of the signatories, to the Commission, the Council and the parliaments of the Member States.