Aunty June just wanted a simple mobile phone. She walked into a Telstra shop in a remote Indigenous community and walked out with multiple postpaid contracts she didn't understand, extras she didn't ask for and monthly bills she couldn't pay. The Federal Court later fined Telstra $50 million for unconscionable conduct. Sales staff had exploited language barriers and financial vulnerability. They weren't helping consumers; they were harvesting them.
Josh thought he was downloading a digital bodyguard. The app Onavo Protect promised to keep his data secure. Instead, it quietly funnelled his browsing history back to Meta. The court fined Meta $20 million for misleading conduct.
Mei took her broken phone to Apple and was told she'd voided her rights because she'd once used a third‑party repairer. That wasn't true. Under the Australian Consumer Law she was entitled to a fix. Apple paid a $9 million penalty for misleading customers.
Liam bought a refurbished phone online only to be told his rights had expired after 14 days. They hadn't. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission stepped in and the seller paid a penalty.
Consumers shouldn't have to memorise the law to get what they are owed, but companies should know it before they sell a product. These examples illustrate a basic truth. Consumers are more vulnerable when markets tilt too far towards a monopoly, when competition fades and when consumer protections lag behind. Labor's consumer protection agenda starts with a simple belief: markets only work when they work for people.
Since coming to office, Labor has delivered for consumers. I would like to acknowledge the Treasurer and Assistant Treasurer in the House today. We are rebuilding the framework that makes markets fair and households confident. We have outlawed unfair contract terms so the fine print can't be used as a trap. We've increased the maximum penalties for anticompetitive conduct and ripping off consumers. The maximum penalty is now the greater of $50 million, 3 times the value of the benefit derived from the breach or 30 per cent of turnover.
We delivered the Motor Vehicle Service and Repair Information Sharing Scheme, allowing independent mechanics to get the data and software tools they need to fix modern cars. The result is that independent mechanics are more productive, there is more competition in the car repair sector and consumers are getting more choice and better prices.
We are modernising product safety standards so that Australians have access to products that meet trusted overseas standards. The Albanese government has established the National Anti‑Scam Centre, bringing together the expertise and resources to disrupt scammers making contact with Australians, to raise consumer awareness about how to avoid scams and to link scam victims to services where they have lost money or had their identity compromised. We've launched Australia's first scams prevention framework, which will put real obligations on banks, telcos and digital platforms to stop scammers before they strike.
To ensure the Australian Consumer Law is up to the task, we commissioned a review to assess its fitness for the AI age. The Review of Artificial Intelligence and the Australian Consumer Law found that the Australian Consumer Law protects people using AI enabled products and services just as it protects those buying traditional goods. The same obligations apply. If a product misleads, harms or fails, consumers have rights and businesses have duties.
The review also highlights opportunities to make the rules clearer through a handful of minor changes, helping business better understand their obligations under the Australian Consumer Law. The government will progress those changes when appropriate.
Our government will legislate a Digital Duty of Care, placing the onus on digital platforms to proactively keep Australian safe and better prevent online harm. Australians deserve confidence that when they use a digital service, whether an app, a smart appliance or an AI driven tool, their rights are protected.
Strong consumer rights need real competition, and real competition depends on strong consumer rights. When markets become too concentrated, prices climb, service declines and firms lose the incentive to play fair. That's why Labor's competition and consumer reforms are designed to reinforce one another.
Last year the Treasurer delivered the biggest overhaul of Australia's merger laws in half a century, moving to a modern, data‑driven system that fast‑tracks low‑risk mergers and puts scrutiny on high‑risk mergers. Those reforms will foster a more competitive and productive Australian economy, put downward pressure on prices and expand consumer choice.
We are also revitalising the National Competition Policy to keep markets open, dynamic and diverse. The Treasurer's $900 million National Productivity Fund will reward states and territories for productivity‑boosting reforms in areas such as commercial planning and zoning and modern methods of construction. Together those changes will make the economy more competitive, innovative and productive.
Fairness in markets also means fairness for workers. Too many Australians are blocked from changing jobs or starting a business by non‑compete clauses buried deep in contracts. From 2027, we'll ban those clauses for workers earning under the high‑income threshold, which is currently $183,000 a year. No more contracts that read like a set of handcuffs. Non‑competes suppress wages, trap people in roles they've outgrown and smother innovation.
We're also closing loopholes on wage fixing and no‑poach agreements that keep pay low and opportunity locked up. By freeing workers to move, we are freeing the flow of ideas, skills and creativity that drive a modern economy.
Nowhere is the need for fairness more obvious than in the supermarket aisles. Together, Coles and Woolworths account for two‑thirds of the market. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has found Australia's big supermarkets are among the most profitable in the world, with limited incentives to compete on price. Families are paying too much for essentials while farmers and suppliers face pressure on the other end. Our reforms tackle this head‑on.
We delivered a mandatory Food and Grocery Code of Conduct on 1 April 2025, implementing all of Dr Craig Emerson's recommendations. The Liberal and National parties voted against it. But Labor's supermarket code protects farmers and suppliers from retaliation, provides anonymous complaint channels through the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and establishes the toughest penalties of any industry code-up to 10 per cent of a company's turnover for serious breaches.
To empower shoppers, we're providing better information. We have funded CHOICE to publish quarterly supermarket price comparisons, giving shoppers better information about how to save money at the check‑out. If sunlight is the best disinfectant, then transparency is the bulk‑buy special. We've backed the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission with an extra $30 million to strengthen investigations and enforcement in the supermarket and retail sector.
Then there's shrinkflation. A packet might look the same, but inside there's more air and less product. It's a sneaky way of pushing up the price. That's why our government has consulted on options to strengthen the Unit Pricing Code so every shopper can see the true cost per unit of a grocery product alongside the total sale price. We'll back those rules with civil penalties for firms that mislead consumers and do the wrong thing.
In addition, the Albanese government has consulted on exposure draft amendments to the Food and Grocery Code to make supermarket price gouging illegal. This will empower the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to investigate and bring enforcement action against Australia's 2 biggest supermarkets if they charge excessive prices for grocery products.
The new laws will provide the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission with another significant tool to protect consumers in their weekly shop. Laws to protect consumers from excessive prices from companies with market power already exist in the European Union, United Kingdom and other jurisdictions.
The Australian Government is also delivering $50 million to help remote communities access affordable groceries, ensuring that planning and zoning rules don't deter new entrants, and requiring that every supermarket merger is automatically notified to the Treasurer. More competitors means fairer prices, better service and a healthier food supply chain.
Last Friday, I chaired a meeting with consumer ministers here in Canberra. With the support of state and territory governments, the Albanese government is banning unfair trading practices. We are banning subscription traps and drip pricing. We are strengthening consumer guarantees and the supply indemnification framework.
Unfair trading practices don't just cost households; they also reveal how manipulative design and a lack of disclosure can tilt markets against consumers. Our reforms introduce a principles‑based and economy‑wide ban on unfair trading practices - a clear rule against conduct that manipulates or distorts consumer decision‑making, causing harm.
On top of that, we are putting a stop to subscription traps. Australians increasingly pay for products and services through subscriptions. While predictable billing can work well, problems arise when design relies on consumers being too busy to notice hidden terms or chase cancellation paths.
Subscription traps arise when joining is swift and effortless but leaving is confusing or loaded with friction. Real cases show trials converting to costly renewals without notice, gyms requiring complex steps to exit and apps stalling with emotionally manipulative prompts. These traps drain budgets and erode trust.
Our reform restores symmetry. If joining takes seconds, leaving should too. Business will need to clearly disclose key terms, provide timely reminders and remove unreasonable barriers to cancelling.
Our government is also strengthening protections against drip pricing. Drip pricing erodes consumer choice by advertising a low upfront price, only to reveal unavoidable per‑transaction charges late in the process, when people have invested time and mentally committed to buying.
Real cases show concert tickets jumping from $89 to $129 at checkout and internet plans hiding set‑up fees until sign up. Drip pricing wastes time, obstructs price comparison and rewards concealment over clarity.
Our reforms strengthen existing protections by requiring all unavoidable per‑transaction fees to be disclosed early and upfront so consumers can choose with confidence and firms compete on merit. Fairness in markets depends on transparency, and that's what these changes deliver.
In addition, the Albanese government is reinforcing Australia's consumer protection framework to ensure that, when products or services fail, Australians and their small businesses receive the refunds, repairs and replacements that they're entitled to. These consumer guarantee reforms introduce tough civil penalties for businesses that fail to comply and give regulators expanded enforcement powers - including infringement notices - to deter noncompliance.
A critical element of these changes is adding penalties around supplier indemnification. Manufacturers are required to reimburse suppliers for the cost of providing remedies, ensuring businesses - especially small businesses - aren't left out of pocket for doing the right thing. By adding penalties to these provisions, regulators will have the tools they need to ensure compliance with the law.
This is particularly important for small retailers, who often bear the upfront cost of refunds or repairs when goods fail. Supplier indemnification reduces the financial strain on small business, helping them enforce their rights more easily and levelling the playing field so compliant businesses aren't disadvantaged by competitors who ignore the law. These changes will also improve clarity and fairness, reducing time and resources spent on disputes and boosting confidence for both consumers and small businesses.
The government will consult stakeholders on draft legislation in early 2026, with a view to bringing legislation to parliament later in the year.
We'll keep building momentum and continue to deepen cooperation across jurisdictions, aligning enforcement, sharing intelligence and ensuring consistent protection, so that whether you live in Humpty Doo or Hobart, Bundaberg or Busselton, Australia's consumer authorities have your back.
Our government's competition and consumer reforms mean Australians can shop, sign and spend with confidence. When you buy a toy to put under the tree, you can trust that is safe. When you take out a phone plan, it's easy to understand the terms. When you pay online, your bank and telco will be guarding against scams. When you fill the supermarket trolley, you won't be paying for hidden mark‑ups. When you sign up for a subscription, you'll know that cancelling will be just as easy. And, if you want to switch to a better job, no fine print will chain you to your old desk.
Markets depend on trust-that prices are fair, contracts are clear and competition is genuine. Labor's consumer reforms are delivering that trust, helping households get a fair deal and rewarding businesses that play by the rules. Confident consumers and fair competition make better markets and a stronger, fairer economy.
