As mentioned in this weeks editorial the Fair Imports Alliance provided its response to the Productivity Commissions report.

Here is their response in full.

Russell Zimmerman Executive Director for The Australian Retailers Association (of which PMA is a member) summarized his submission to the Productivity Commission as below:

The Australian Retailers Association (ARA) appeared on Monday as the first witness to the Productivity Commission's public hearing on the Economic Structure and Performance of the Australian Retail Industry.

As the first peak retail industry representative to appear before the Productivity Commission, we were able to outline many of the key issues affecting the retail industry and respond to key points in the Productivity Commission's draft report released on 4 August 2011.

Key points the ARA elaborated on in the hearing a are:

·            The need for changes to Customs parcel processes and procedures in order to make a reduction of the GST threshold for imported goods viable and create a level playing field for Australian retailers competing on a global scale;

·            A review on tenancy and the oligopolistic nature of shopping centre ownership, including the need for third party reporting of turnovers and a common and transparent market rate mechanism for rent setting, as well as transparency when re-negotiating rents. The ARA welcomes the PC's acknowledgement that planning and zoning restrictions are propagating the power imbalance between landlords and retailers at the negotiation table;

·            A call for a review of workplace relations and the need for increased workplace productivity including the current disincentive retailers have to retain low-skilled staff under the current Fair Work Act.

·            Government support to get Aussie retailers online, with key figures on the current and future growth rates of the online retail space and the opportunities for existing Australian retailers to enter into eCommerce as part of their market reach.

The ARA has also represented issues affecting retail and raised in the PC hearings in major metropolitan media over the last couple of days, including coverage on ABC, SBS, Canberra Times and The Australian.

The ARA looks forward to keeping members up to date on the outcomes of the hearings.