Groceries Code Adjudicator: Statutory Review
(Limited Text - Ministerial Extracts only)
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The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Business and Trade (Justin Madders)
As part of the fourth statutory review of the Groceries Code Adjudicator, the Department for Business and Trade will today publish a consultation seeking the views of stakeholders on the performance of the GCA.
The GCA was established by the Groceries Code Adjudicator Act 2013. Its role is to monitor and enforce the groceries supply code of practice, which the UK’s designated large grocery retailers must comply with when dealing with their direct suppliers.
Section 15 of the Act requires the Government to review periodically the performance of the GCA. The first review covered the period from the creation of the GCA in June 2013 to 31 March 2016. The second review covered the period from 1 April 2016 to 31 March 2019 and the third statutory review covered the period from 1 April 2019 to 31 March 2022.
The statutory review is not a review of the code nor of the remit of the GCA. The code is a competition measure owned by the Competition and Markets Authority as the UK’s independent competition authority.
The fourth review will look back over the period 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2025 and seek views and evidence which will allow the Secretary of State to make an assessment of the performance of the GCA against the measures set out in the Act. These measures are explained in the terms of reference.
As part of the consultation, the Government are interested in seeking views on how the GCA is operating following the establishment of the Agricultural Supply Chain Adjudicator and any evidence of unfair contractual practices that may have a negative impact on parts of the supply chain not covered by the code or the fair dealings regulations made under the Agriculture Act 2020.
The Groceries Code Adjudicator Act requires the Government to consult with the following:
the GCA;
the Competition and Markets Authority;
the retailers subject to the code;
one or more persons representing the interests of suppliers;
one or more persons representing the interests of consumers; and
any other appropriate person—the Secretary of State has not identified any specific person or persons here and welcomes contributions from any interested person.
The invitation to submit comments and evidence can be accessed at https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/groceries-code-adjudicator-gca-statutory-review-2022-to-2025 and stakeholders have until 5 August 2025 to respond. Following this, the Secretary of State will analyse the responses. A report on the Secretary of State’s findings will then be published and laid before Parliament.
The terms of reference for the GCA review have today been placed in the Libraries of both Houses of Parliament.
[HCWS629]