dalereardon
Active Member
- Joined
- Nov 6, 2012
- Posts
- 518
Hi,
I got early notification as I have lodged a submission in relation to this matter. I have permission to share the letter as it will be going public on the ACCC website shortly. Will be an interesting conference and hopefully they can negotiate a deal:
Letter re Qantas and Emirates conference.pdf
Australian Competition & Consumer Commission
GPO Box 3131
Canberra ACT 2601
23 Marcus Clarke Street
Canberra ACT 2601
tel: (02) 6243 1111
fax: (02) 6243 1199
ACCC Home
Our Ref: 49707
Contact Officer: Shane Chisholm, Tess Macrae, Mark Basile
Contact Phone: (02) 6243 1036, (03) 9290 1835, (03) 9290 1855
16 January 2013
Dear Sir/Madam
Re: Qantas Airways Limited and Emirates applications for authorisation A91332 &
A91333 - Pre-decision Conference
The Transport Workers Union of Australia has requested that the Australian Competition &
Consumer Commission (the ACCC) convene a conference in relation to the draft
determination issued on 20 December 2012 proposing to grant conditional authorisation to
Qantas Airways Limited (Qantas) and Emirates.
The draft determination relates to an application for authorisation by Qantas and Emirates,
lodged on 7 September 2012, to coordinate their operations pursuant to a Master
Coordination Agreement. The alliance between Qantas and Emirates will involve
cooperation on passenger and freight operations across their networks. The ACCC
concluded in its draft determination that it was satisfied that, subject to the implementation of
a capacity condition on the trans-Tasman, the public benefit flowing from the proposed
arrangements was likely to outweigh any anti-competitive detriment and proposed to grant
conditional authorisation to the applications. A copy of the applications and draft
determination can be found on the ACCC’s website
<www.accc.gov.au/AuthorisationsRegister>.
A pre-decision conference provides an opportunity for the applicants and interested parties
to make oral submissions to the ACCC about its draft determination.
The ACCC will hold the conference on 1 February 2013, in Sydney, with a venue to be
confirmed. The conference will commence at 10:30am. Commissioner Jill Walker will chair
the conference. The ACCC will advise of the conference venue by 29 January 2013.
Under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act), the conference may be attended
by the applicant and other interested parties. If you wish to attend, you must notify the ACCC
of your intention by 22 January 2013. Notifications must be in writing and addressed to:
The General Manager
Adjudication Branch
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
By email: [email protected]
You can also notify the ACCC by post to GPO Box 3131, Canberra ACT 2601, or by
facsimile on (02) 6243 1212.
You should provide details of a contact name, telephone number, e-mail address or facsimile
number, and mailing address so that you can be notified of any late changes to conference
arrangements.
Attached for your information are procedures usually followed at pre-decision conferences.
If you represent a company or organisation you should identify the company or organisation
and also provide a list of attendees and their position titles, and indicate who will be the chief
spokesperson.
The ACCC may also receive requests from journalists who wish to attend the conference.
The attached pre-decision conference procedures set out a process concerning media
involvement at a pre-decision conference. If you have any relevant concerns or objections
please advise the ACCC of these when notifying your intention to attend the conference.
I would also note that, while conference participants may bring outside legal or other
professional advisers to assist them, the Act prohibits these advisers from participating in
conference discussions.
A copy of this letter has been placed on the ACCC’s public register. If you require any further
information in regard to the conference or wish to clarify whether you may be considered an
‘interested person’ within the terms of the Act, please do not hesitate to contact Shane
Chisholm on (02) 6243 1036, Tess Macrae on (03) 9290 1835 or Mark Basile on
(03) 9290 1855.
Yours sincerely
Richard Fleming
Acting General Manager
Adjudication Branch
AN OUTLINE OF THE PROCEDURES USUALLY FOLLOWED
AT CONFERENCES IN RELATION TO APPLICATIONS FOR AUTHORISATION
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) tries to conduct such
conferences as informally, flexibly and speedily as possible.
An interested party attending a conference may have the assistance of outside legal or other
professional advisers, however, they are not entitled to participate in the discussion.
The conference will serve a useful purpose in that it gives the ACCC and all interested
parties the opportunity to meet face-to-face to discuss the operation and effect of the
applicant’s conduct and the ACCC’s draft determination. The applicant and/or interested
persons have the opportunity to persuade the ACCC to accept their view. The ACCC
benefits from direct contact with the parties, and its perceptions of public benefits and
detriments are tested in a forum of interested parties where points are often quickly and
forcefully made.
1. Preliminary procedures
(a) When you arrive at the conference you should identify yourself to ACCC staff before
the conference begins. Further, please complete the attendance book when arriving
at the conference. This assists ACCC staff to identify attendees for the purpose of
recording the discussion.
(b) The Chair (a Commissioner) will open the conference by welcoming those present
and outlining the requirements of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 and the
manner in which the conference will be conducted.
(c) If you intend to present a written comment (and you are encouraged to do so), it is
helpful if the ACCC receives it before the conference date. It can then be copied and
distributed at the conference. In this way, both the ACCC and other parties present
are assisted, and your submission forms part of the conference record. If you cannot
complete the written submission earlier, it is helpful if you come to the conference
with extra copies which can be distributed.
(d) Any document you present without making any request for it to be excluded from the
public register will be placed on the ACCC's public register.
If you intend to present a submission at the conference and you wish it (or certain
details in it) to be excluded from the public register, you should make your request to
the Chair at the time of presenting the document, and you should state in general
terms the reason for your request. (See the ACCC’s
Guidelines for excluding
information from the public register).
.
2. General procedures
(a) The conference has been convened to discuss the draft determination, to canvass
points of view and to assist the ACCC's weighing of issues and its interpretation of
the information given to it.
(b) The procedure is discretionary. The Chair controls the order of discussion, and may
take particular topics separately, so that all the discussion on any given topic may be
heard at the one time.
(c) The conference is not a court, and there is no right of cross-examination. You may
request the Chair to ask questions of other parties present, but the Chair retains the
discretion as to whether your questions will be put. The Chair, of course, may also
directly question the parties at the conference, and they have discretion whether or
not to answer.
(d) ACCC staff present will make a record of the discussion. This will be in minute form,
not a verbatim record. The conference record is placed on the public register, and all
who attend the conference will receive a copy.
(e) When the Chair believes that all present have been given a reasonable opportunity to
express their views, he/she may terminate the conference.
(f) The Chair (and any other Commissioner at the conference) cannot give a final
decision at the close of the conference. Each Commissioner is only a representative
of the ACCC and is required to report back to the ACCC, which will make the final
decision.
3. Other matters
(a) Following the pre-decision conference, the ACCC will review its draft determination in the light of discussion and further submissions made at the
conference (or within a set period of time after the conference), and will publish its final determination as soon as possible thereafter.
4. Media involvement
(a) Conferences are not public hearings and the Competition and Consumer Act limits the right to attend to interested parties. In some cases, members of
the media may wish to attend a conference to report on the proceedings. In these instances, the Commissioner chairing will seek the views of the interested
parties on whether the attendance of media representatives would restrict interested parties from freely expressing their views. If objections are raised,
the Commissioner may ask the members of the media not to attend or to leave the conference.
(b) If there are no objections and media representatives do attend, the Commissioner will ask that no quotes are taken from the conference discussion.
If quotes from particular parties are desired, they should be approached outside of the conference.
___________________________
I got early notification as I have lodged a submission in relation to this matter. I have permission to share the letter as it will be going public on the ACCC website shortly. Will be an interesting conference and hopefully they can negotiate a deal:
Letter re Qantas and Emirates conference.pdf
Australian Competition & Consumer Commission
GPO Box 3131
Canberra ACT 2601
23 Marcus Clarke Street
Canberra ACT 2601
tel: (02) 6243 1111
fax: (02) 6243 1199
ACCC Home
Our Ref: 49707
Contact Officer: Shane Chisholm, Tess Macrae, Mark Basile
Contact Phone: (02) 6243 1036, (03) 9290 1835, (03) 9290 1855
16 January 2013
Dear Sir/Madam
Re: Qantas Airways Limited and Emirates applications for authorisation A91332 &
A91333 - Pre-decision Conference
The Transport Workers Union of Australia has requested that the Australian Competition &
Consumer Commission (the ACCC) convene a conference in relation to the draft
determination issued on 20 December 2012 proposing to grant conditional authorisation to
Qantas Airways Limited (Qantas) and Emirates.
The draft determination relates to an application for authorisation by Qantas and Emirates,
lodged on 7 September 2012, to coordinate their operations pursuant to a Master
Coordination Agreement. The alliance between Qantas and Emirates will involve
cooperation on passenger and freight operations across their networks. The ACCC
concluded in its draft determination that it was satisfied that, subject to the implementation of
a capacity condition on the trans-Tasman, the public benefit flowing from the proposed
arrangements was likely to outweigh any anti-competitive detriment and proposed to grant
conditional authorisation to the applications. A copy of the applications and draft
determination can be found on the ACCC’s website
<www.accc.gov.au/AuthorisationsRegister>.
A pre-decision conference provides an opportunity for the applicants and interested parties
to make oral submissions to the ACCC about its draft determination.
The ACCC will hold the conference on 1 February 2013, in Sydney, with a venue to be
confirmed. The conference will commence at 10:30am. Commissioner Jill Walker will chair
the conference. The ACCC will advise of the conference venue by 29 January 2013.
Under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (the Act), the conference may be attended
by the applicant and other interested parties. If you wish to attend, you must notify the ACCC
of your intention by 22 January 2013. Notifications must be in writing and addressed to:
The General Manager
Adjudication Branch
Australian Competition and Consumer Commission
By email: [email protected]
You can also notify the ACCC by post to GPO Box 3131, Canberra ACT 2601, or by
facsimile on (02) 6243 1212.
You should provide details of a contact name, telephone number, e-mail address or facsimile
number, and mailing address so that you can be notified of any late changes to conference
arrangements.
Attached for your information are procedures usually followed at pre-decision conferences.
If you represent a company or organisation you should identify the company or organisation
and also provide a list of attendees and their position titles, and indicate who will be the chief
spokesperson.
The ACCC may also receive requests from journalists who wish to attend the conference.
The attached pre-decision conference procedures set out a process concerning media
involvement at a pre-decision conference. If you have any relevant concerns or objections
please advise the ACCC of these when notifying your intention to attend the conference.
I would also note that, while conference participants may bring outside legal or other
professional advisers to assist them, the Act prohibits these advisers from participating in
conference discussions.
A copy of this letter has been placed on the ACCC’s public register. If you require any further
information in regard to the conference or wish to clarify whether you may be considered an
‘interested person’ within the terms of the Act, please do not hesitate to contact Shane
Chisholm on (02) 6243 1036, Tess Macrae on (03) 9290 1835 or Mark Basile on
(03) 9290 1855.
Yours sincerely
Richard Fleming
Acting General Manager
Adjudication Branch
AN OUTLINE OF THE PROCEDURES USUALLY FOLLOWED
AT CONFERENCES IN RELATION TO APPLICATIONS FOR AUTHORISATION
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) tries to conduct such
conferences as informally, flexibly and speedily as possible.
An interested party attending a conference may have the assistance of outside legal or other
professional advisers, however, they are not entitled to participate in the discussion.
The conference will serve a useful purpose in that it gives the ACCC and all interested
parties the opportunity to meet face-to-face to discuss the operation and effect of the
applicant’s conduct and the ACCC’s draft determination. The applicant and/or interested
persons have the opportunity to persuade the ACCC to accept their view. The ACCC
benefits from direct contact with the parties, and its perceptions of public benefits and
detriments are tested in a forum of interested parties where points are often quickly and
forcefully made.
1. Preliminary procedures
(a) When you arrive at the conference you should identify yourself to ACCC staff before
the conference begins. Further, please complete the attendance book when arriving
at the conference. This assists ACCC staff to identify attendees for the purpose of
recording the discussion.
(b) The Chair (a Commissioner) will open the conference by welcoming those present
and outlining the requirements of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 and the
manner in which the conference will be conducted.
(c) If you intend to present a written comment (and you are encouraged to do so), it is
helpful if the ACCC receives it before the conference date. It can then be copied and
distributed at the conference. In this way, both the ACCC and other parties present
are assisted, and your submission forms part of the conference record. If you cannot
complete the written submission earlier, it is helpful if you come to the conference
with extra copies which can be distributed.
(d) Any document you present without making any request for it to be excluded from the
public register will be placed on the ACCC's public register.
If you intend to present a submission at the conference and you wish it (or certain
details in it) to be excluded from the public register, you should make your request to
the Chair at the time of presenting the document, and you should state in general
terms the reason for your request. (See the ACCC’s
Guidelines for excluding
information from the public register).
.
2. General procedures
(a) The conference has been convened to discuss the draft determination, to canvass
points of view and to assist the ACCC's weighing of issues and its interpretation of
the information given to it.
(b) The procedure is discretionary. The Chair controls the order of discussion, and may
take particular topics separately, so that all the discussion on any given topic may be
heard at the one time.
(c) The conference is not a court, and there is no right of cross-examination. You may
request the Chair to ask questions of other parties present, but the Chair retains the
discretion as to whether your questions will be put. The Chair, of course, may also
directly question the parties at the conference, and they have discretion whether or
not to answer.
(d) ACCC staff present will make a record of the discussion. This will be in minute form,
not a verbatim record. The conference record is placed on the public register, and all
who attend the conference will receive a copy.
(e) When the Chair believes that all present have been given a reasonable opportunity to
express their views, he/she may terminate the conference.
(f) The Chair (and any other Commissioner at the conference) cannot give a final
decision at the close of the conference. Each Commissioner is only a representative
of the ACCC and is required to report back to the ACCC, which will make the final
decision.
3. Other matters
(a) Following the pre-decision conference, the ACCC will review its draft determination in the light of discussion and further submissions made at the
conference (or within a set period of time after the conference), and will publish its final determination as soon as possible thereafter.
4. Media involvement
(a) Conferences are not public hearings and the Competition and Consumer Act limits the right to attend to interested parties. In some cases, members of
the media may wish to attend a conference to report on the proceedings. In these instances, the Commissioner chairing will seek the views of the interested
parties on whether the attendance of media representatives would restrict interested parties from freely expressing their views. If objections are raised,
the Commissioner may ask the members of the media not to attend or to leave the conference.
(b) If there are no objections and media representatives do attend, the Commissioner will ask that no quotes are taken from the conference discussion.
If quotes from particular parties are desired, they should be approached outside of the conference.
___________________________
