National was unenthusiastic, but commissioned consultants to report on the proposal.
The report arrived in June. The consultants found there could be a price advantage but conceded their calculations could be wrong.
Foodstuffs disputed the findings, saying there was no evidence that breaking up its business would lead to lower grocery prices and warning that it would reduce efficiencies, duplicate infrastructure and increase costs.
At 2.37pm on 15 September National’s supermarket policy was as described by Commerce Minister Cameron Brewer in answer to Question 12: “making it easier to consent and build supermarkets, improving overseas investment pathways, strengthening competition settings and supplier protections, and backing Commerce Commission enforcement.”
16 September 2026 was a very busy day.
The June cost-benefit analysis was released by MBIE.
Nineteen hours and 46 minutes after Minister Brewer’s answer in Parliament, at 10.23am on 16 September, National issued a media advisory saying Christopher Luxon and Nicola Willis would make a “significant” announcement in the National caucus room at 10.30am — just seven minutes later.
When I was in Parliament, you always gave the media plenty of notice of a press conference. There is a simple reason: television crews must be able to get there.
At 10.30am the finance minister announced that National’s supermarket policy was now to break up Foodstuffs.
What happened to transform the policy?
It wasn’t new official information. When releasing the cost-benefit analysis that day, MBIE said: “The Government will not be advancing any of the policy options contained within this analysis.”
What did happen?
On 15 September, Curia’s average polling had National on 29 percent.
On the morning of 16 September, Labour issued its own media advisory saying it would announce its supermarket policy later that day.
If the intention was to gazump Labour and swamp its announcement, it worked.
We will have to wait to see whether voters think a supermarket policy developed at warp speed works.
The Honourable Richard Prebble CBE is a former member of the New Zealand Parliament. Initially a member of the Labour Party, he joined the newly formed ACT New Zealand party under Roger Douglas in 1996, becoming its leader from 1996 to 2004. This article was sourced HERE
At 2.37pm on 15 September National’s supermarket policy was as described by Commerce Minister Cameron Brewer in answer to Question 12: “making it easier to consent and build supermarkets, improving overseas investment pathways, strengthening competition settings and supplier protections, and backing Commerce Commission enforcement.”
16 September 2026 was a very busy day.
The June cost-benefit analysis was released by MBIE.
Nineteen hours and 46 minutes after Minister Brewer’s answer in Parliament, at 10.23am on 16 September, National issued a media advisory saying Christopher Luxon and Nicola Willis would make a “significant” announcement in the National caucus room at 10.30am — just seven minutes later.
When I was in Parliament, you always gave the media plenty of notice of a press conference. There is a simple reason: television crews must be able to get there.
At 10.30am the finance minister announced that National’s supermarket policy was now to break up Foodstuffs.
What happened to transform the policy?
It wasn’t new official information. When releasing the cost-benefit analysis that day, MBIE said: “The Government will not be advancing any of the policy options contained within this analysis.”
What did happen?
On 15 September, Curia’s average polling had National on 29 percent.
On the morning of 16 September, Labour issued its own media advisory saying it would announce its supermarket policy later that day.
If the intention was to gazump Labour and swamp its announcement, it worked.
We will have to wait to see whether voters think a supermarket policy developed at warp speed works.
The Honourable Richard Prebble CBE is a former member of the New Zealand Parliament. Initially a member of the Labour Party, he joined the newly formed ACT New Zealand party under Roger Douglas in 1996, becoming its leader from 1996 to 2004. This article was sourced HERE
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