Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what steps he is taking to ensure that supermarket purchasing restrictions are (a) fair and (b) flexible during the covid-19 outbreak for parents with newborn babies.

The Government welcomes efforts by supermarkets to ensure vulnerable groups, including parents with newborn babies, can shop safely and access the goods they need. However, decisions on restricting the number of items consumers can purchase are best made by individual businesses, who understand their operations and customer base.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has created a COVID-19 taskforce to address excessive pricing practices and has set up this online form so that consumers and businesses can report any issues via: https://www.coronavirus-business-complaint.service.gov.uk/.

The CMA will consider any evidence that companies may have broken competition or consumer protection law and it will take direct enforcement action where appropriate.