The Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce (VACC) has declared the Rudd Government's Fuelwatch scheme "flawed from the outset".
Speaking on behalf of the Chamber, its Executive Director, David Purchase, had nothing but praise for Pat Walker, the ACCC's Petrol Commissioner who recently announced his resignation from the position for personal reasons.
"From our experience, Mr Walker was sincere and genuine in his attempt to tackle the fuel pricing issue," Purchase said.
"However, the attempt to implement an Australia-wide Fuelwatch Scheme, based on the Western Australian model, was flawed from the outset, as the focus was fixed at the retail level.
"VACC has repeatedly identified to Government that the real issue of transparency in petrol pricing, and in anti-competitive behaviour by the fuel majors, is at the wholesale level.
"The only way to ensure there is competition in the market is through a transparent and fair Terminal Gate Price (TGP) for independent service station operators, who are currently disadvantaged when buying wholesale supplies.
"VACC urges the Government to take this opportunity to abandon the proposed national Fuelwatch scheme. We remain willing to assist the ACCC and Government in any future discussions concerning petrol prices."
The VACC's announcement comes as media outlets report a waning in international oil prices, expected to bring some relief to local fuel consumers by dropping the retail price back to $1.50 a litre or less.
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