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Page 575 disturb the production and distribution of branded goods. Should experience show that abuses do recur, it will be for the Government and Parliament to deal appropriately with them. The Government will not be found unwilling to consider any reasonable proposal directed towards dealing with extremes or abuses of price competition as such, provided always that any such proposal can be reconciled with the objective of allowing traders to fix their own selling prices in reasonable relation to their own costs and trading policy. The Government is, however, firmly convinced that any regulation of "unfair" competition that may in future be found necessary should be provided by statute and should not be imposed by private associations, operating a private system of law and punishment and accountable to no one but themselves.

PART III.-STEPS ALREADY TAKEN BY THE GOVERNMENT AND THE GOVERNMENT'S NEW PROPOSALS

The Lloyd Jacob Committee

29. The Government's first step in dealing with resale price maintenance was to set up in August 1947 a Departmental Committee under the chairman- ship of Mr. G. H. Lloyd Jacob, K.C. (now Mr. Justice Lloyd Jacob) to inquire into the practice.

30. The Committee reported in March 1949 and the report* was published on 2nd June, 1949. The Committee made three recommendations (cf. paras. 163 to 167 of the Report) :·

(a) No action should be taken which would deprive an individual producer of the power to prescribe and enforce resale prices for goods bearing his brand.

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(b) Producers are not entitled to use resale price maintenance to obstruct the development of particular methods of trading, to impede the dis- tribution by another manufacturer of competitive goods or to deprive the public of the benefits of improvements in distribution. Public policy requires adequate distribution of goods with provisions for such price reductions as are justified by low cost distribution or by a regular policy of distributing surplus profit to the customer. The appropriate Govern- ment Departments should invite consultations with the principal national organisations in trade and industry to consider the most satis- factory means of ensuring that this policy is made effective.

(c) Steps should be taken to render illegal the application of sanctions which extend beyond the remedies open to an individual producer for any breach of resale price maintenance conditions.

It will be noted that the second of these recommendations is in effect a qualification of the first.

Collective Enforcement Schemes-The Government's Proposal

31. Despite the fact that the Committee's last recommendation to make collective sanctions illegal-was not qualified in any way, the Government thought it right to give the manufacturers and traders concerned an oppor- tunity to discontinue these sanctions. The President of the Board of Trade, in a statement in the House of Commons on 2nd June, 1949, said that the evidence contained in the report "should convince manufacturers and traders that their own interests, as well as those of the country, will be best served by freeing distribution from the many self-imposed restrictions and controls described in the report." He added that he hoped that “in the next few months we shall see industry itself taking steps to this end."

32. A suitable interval was left for this purpose until in December 1949 a letter was sent to all known collective price maintenance associations asking them whether they had taken or intended to take any action in the matter. It became clear from their replies that the associations generally intended to con- tinue their schemes without modification. Subsequently, various pamphlets which have been issued on behalf of the principal associations have shown that they still regard these schemes as being in the public interest. There have also been meetings between representatives of these associations and the President of the Board of Trade but there has been no indication that any changes which the associations might now be prepared to make would in any sense carry out the intention of the Lloyd Jacob Committee's recommendation.

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33. The Government has concluded in the light of these facts that no adequate action is likely to be taken by, the manufacturers and traders con- cerned; and, having fully considered all the arguments that have been advanced on the subject, has decided that this recommendation of the Lloyd Jacob Com- mittee must now be implemented by legislation.

*The Report of the Committee on Resale Price Maintenance Cmd. 7690, London,

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