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Australia: Veteran antitrust expert rallies for even tougher merger legislation

By  |  March 6, 2013

The man who spearheaded Australia’s mergers legislation two decades ago is speaking out once again declaring the need for even tougher antitrust and merger laws. Professor Allan Fels argued in Sydney that laws need to be stricter and more effective when it comes to abuse of market power; he also called for legislation to more adequately address “creeping acquisitions.” Professor Fels served as the chairman of the Trade Practices Commission as well as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission as he rallied in 1993 for government legislation to block mergers that would lead to a loss in competition; beforehand, mergers could only be blocked if it would lead to one company dominating the market. The remarks were made in the midst of a major probe by the ACCC into two of the nation’s largest supermarket chains over allegations of abuse of market power.

 

Full Content: The Age

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