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Supermarkets and Regional Farming

My hon. Friend makes a fair point. The hon. Member for South-West Norfolk (Christopher Fraser), who is no longer in his place, mentioned the premier contracts that some dairies have with farmers. I discussed that matter with my hon. Friend the Member for North-West Leicestershire (David Taylor) and the Select Committee on Environment, Food and Rural Affairs only last week. It is producing a report on the failure of dairy farmers in Britain, which will draw on the lessons learned and help the industry to move forward. The Competition Commission identified two adverse aspects of competition—areas in which the market structure does not work in the best interests of consumers. It identified areas where local groceries markets were dominated by single retail chains, restricting the choice available to shoppers. It also found that certain supermarket practices passed unacceptable risks or costs on to suppliers, mainly food manufacturers and processors, creating higher levels of uncertainty about their income and so limiting their ability to invest and innovate. The commission proposed a number of remedies and recommendations to address the adverse effects on competition identified. They include a new groceries supply code of practice for all supermarkets with a turnover of more than £1 billion a year. The GSCOP will come into force next February, and the OFT will play an important role in overseeing its implementation. Additionally, the commission recommended that the Government establish an ombudsman, which my hon. Friend the Member for Chorley and our other hon. Friends who support him mentioned. Its duty would be to monitor the GSCOP and arbitrate disputes between suppliers. It was also recommended that a competition test be added to the planning rules regarding the location of new supermarkets. That was a request that my hon. Friend made in his closing comments. The Government are considering those recommendations carefully. Competition policy is a matter for the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, but DEFRA too will play an active role in determining the Government's response to the proposal to create an ombudsman, and we want to take full account of the views of stakeholders.