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Back to NCP Review of the Uniform Trade Measurement Legislation Index Uniform trade measurement legislation In 1990, Ministers from each Australian State and Territory, with the exception of Western Australia, signed a Formal Agreement to implement uniform trade measurement legislation. Queensland enacted the uniform legislation via the Trade Measurement Act 1990 (the `Act'), with the last of the other signatory states/territories to follow suit being Tasmania in 2000. The objectives of the legislation The objectives of the legislation are not stated explicitly in the legislation, however for the purposes of this review the consultants worked with the Review Committee to compile objectives for government intervention in trade measurements, which were agreed to by the Review Committee for the purposes of the review. The agreed legislative objectives are the:
Requirement to review under NCP principles Trade measurement legislation plays an important role in the economy. By clarifying for business and consumers the measurement of goods offered for sale, trade measurement legislation facilitates market transactions. However, in doing this, some elements of trade measurement legislation have the potential to restrict competition in the economy. The Competition Principles Agreement made between all Australian Governments in 1995 provides for the review and where appropriate reform of any legislated restrictions on competition by June 2002. Such a review is undertaken in the context of the restrictions only, as opposed to the legislation as a whole. The Queensland legislation required to be reviewed was:
The review parameters encompassed significantly similar legislation in each other Australian State and Territory excepting Western Australia. In addition the scoping study considered the amendments to the uniform trade measurement legislation agreed to by the Trade Measurement Advisory Committee ("TMAC") in mid-1998, which are yet to be implemented. The legislation reviewed is linked to other Commonwealth and State legislation, notably the Commonwealth's National Measurement Act and the Trade Measurement Administration Acts and supporting regulations of each state and territory. These pieces of legislation are outside the scope of this stage of the review. National review agreed after consultation with all jurisdictions In accordance with the proposed Public Benefit Test Plan for uniform trade measurement legislation, endorsed by the Standing Committee of Officials of Consumer Affairs ("SCOCA") and the Ministerial Council on Consumer Affairs ("MCCA"), Queensland is the lead agency for the conduct of a NCP review of uniform trade measurement legislation, covering all States and Territories, except Western Australia. As there was no means of providing a clear final cost of the review, SCOCA directed that the review process be conducted in stages and that it approve the costings of each stage of the review. Part of the process for conducting the review was a proposal to engage consultants to carry out market analysis and Public Benefit Testing. Tender documentation for the review process were prepared requesting submissions be presented to the Queensland Office of Fair Trading for assessment and recommendation to SCOCA for approval. Terms of Reference agreed / approved by MCCA and CRR Terms of Reference, scoping document and strategies for implementing a national review of trade measurement legislation had been submitted to the TMAC on 16 October 1998. Following TMAC's acceptance of the Terms of Reference and scoping documents, they were referred to SCOCA for consideration at its meeting of 27 November 1998. At that meeting SCOCA -
On 18 January 1999 the Terms of Reference and other supporting documents were forwarded to MCCA for consideration. Western Australia rejected the national review approach and expressed intent to proceed with its own NCP legislative review. In view of the Western Australian approach, SCOCA was informed and gave fresh consideration to whether a national approach was to continue for the review process. The response from MCCA Ministers was to agree to the continuation of a national review, less Western Australia. The ACT agreed in principle, pending a final consideration of costs prior to undertaking the review. When concerns from ACT were satisfied, the Terms of Reference and scoping study plan were submitted to the CRR for approval of the review process. Requests for Proposals by tender were sent on 23 August 1999 to each of the four consultancy groups engaged by the Queensland Department of Equity and Fair Trading as "preferred providers". Tenders closed on Tuesday 7 October 1999 and three offers were received from consultancy groups. An assessment panel consisting of Ms Wil Brown, Principal Policy Officer (NCP), Policy and Executive Services and Mr Pat Malone, Senior Policy Officer (NCP), Policy and Executive Services carried out assessment of the proposals submitted by the three consultancy groups. The assessments were based on the selection criteria contained in the "Request for Proposal" sent to each prospective candidate. Additionally, Mr Mike Montefiore, a consultant engaged by Queensland Treasury to manage NCP reviews, provided a preliminary independent assessment and overview of the applications. Assessment recommendations were developed using The Value Selection process established under the "Guidelines for Evaluating Consultancy Proposals" of the Queensland Government's State Purchasing Policy, and were made on the basis of merit and `value for money'. This brief summary of the recommended application was given to SCOCA for their approval: Economic Insights This applicant provided a staged approach to the review proposing two options for the first stage -
The second stage was not estimated at this time because the consultant claimed tasks could not be pre-supposed. However the applicant indicated a cost of $60-$80,000 for stage two - conduct and reporting of PBT. Surveys of consumer attitudes would add a further $60,000 to the cost of the exercise. This proposal was a satisfactory bid in relation to methodology and expertise. Time lines appeared acceptable at 150 days, which would be within the required timeframe of the PBT Plan. The applicant estimated that the initial stage should be completed within one month of commencement of the consultancy. Economic Insights demonstrated that it was capable of carrying out the review with a high level of application to the task. Strong research indicators were provided in the submission with examples of two relevant case studies on public weighbridge licensing and the regulation of conditions placed on the sale of meat. Based on the assessment of the three proposals received, Economic Insights was recommended as the Service Provider for the NCP review and scoping study for PBT uniform trade measurement legislation. It was recommended to SCOCA that the option to provide a four stepped approach to the scoping/costing stage, including the initial in-principle assessment and market analysis at $37,000 be accepted. Prior to the engagement of the Service Provider, authority/approval on costings of the review was obtained from SCOCA. A memorandum for circulation out of session to SCOCA members was endorsed and forwarded to the SCOCA Secretariat for distribution. SCOCA determined that the $37,000 option proposal in the first stage of Economic Insights' proposal was appropriate to successfully complete the review to the satisfaction of CRR and the National Competition Council. The recommendations were ratified and, following SCOCA approval of the costings of the review, a formal contract was negotiated with the successful consultancy firm. A Review Committee was established to oversee the work of the consultants in this scoping study stage. Review Committee membership was drawn from each state and territory participating in the review and included invitations extended to the National Standards Commission and the Commonwealth Department of Industry, Science and Resources, to observe and participate in discussions. Review Committee members were: Malcolm Bartlett, Trade Measurement QLD Vic Lawrence, Trade Measurement NSW Janice Boyle, Policy and Regulatory Division ACT Murray Gordon, Trade Measurement TAS Adam Wilson, Policy and Legal Unit SA Les Anderson, Trade Measurement NT Martin Oakley, Office of Regulation Reform VIC Observers: Wil Brown, Secretariat to the review QLD Mike Montefiore, Queensland Treasury - Advisor QLD Grahame Harvey, National Standards Commission CWTH Brian Phillips, Department of Industry, Science and Resources CWTH This section summarises the consultation Economic Insights drew on in preparing their report. Trade measurement inspectors accompanied the consultant to 15 retail outlets and 3 weighbridges in the Brisbane region. Some premises were officially inspected. Interviews on operating practices and the impact of trade measurement legislation were held with most on-site manager/operators. The consultant separately interviewed by phone or face-to-face more than 30 organisations in Australia and New Zealand, most being industry participants or industry association. In addition, a number of weighbridge owners in Queensland and inter-state were consulted in order to obtain data used in an indicative examination of the benefits of the public weighbridge system. Consultation sought to identify the impact of current legislation. It was expected that it would be difficult to identify the benefits of the current legislation because they are almost unnoticeable and are spread over a large number of transactions by a large number of people. Consequently the consultation focussed on establishing if any problems were created by the current legislation. When significant problems were identified without provision of the legislation, the consultation sought to identify the potential benefits of the legislation. A list of typical questions asked of those consulted is provided at table E.2 in the consultant's report. Over 1997 and 1998 TMAC consulted industry and consumer groups on a range of proposed changes to the trade measurement legislation. It is understood that some members of TMAC were not completely satisfied with this round of consultation, with the absence of any issues paper explaining the pros and cons of the proposed amendments seen to result in a lack of suitable understanding by some respondents. Nevertheless, the material provided useful insights into industry and consumer attitudes and was drawn upon in preparing their report. Interviews with interested parties Organisations interviewed included 13 Queensland association representatives, 9 national association representatives, 2 New South Wales association representatives, 1 Northern Territory association representative, 2 Victorian association and industry representatives and 4 New Zealand association and industry representatives. They ranged from Public Weighbridge Owners Association, Queensland Consumers Association to National Meat Association of Australia and industry representatives. Typical questions asked of these groups are noted in the report and were based on determining the industry and consumer view of any restrictions, qualifying any impacts of the current legislation and determining influences and trends in trade measurement as it impacts on choice and quality. Back to NCP Review of the Uniform Trade Measurement Legislation Index |
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© Commonwealth of Australia 2000 Ministerial Council on Consumer Affairs www.consumer.gov.au
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