Competition and Consumer Amendment (Responding to Exceptional Circumstances) Bill 2026; Second Reading

Summary

The government wants to give the Minister power to declare when Australia faces exceptional circumstances (like the Middle East conflict) that aren't officially classified as national emergencies. When such a declaration is made, the ACCC can then allow businesses to do things that would normally break competition laws if those actions help respond to the crisis and serve the public interest. This amends the Competition and Consumer Act by adding Schedule 1, which creates these new ministerial and ACCC powers while including safeguards like consumer protections, requirements for parliamentary review (disallowance), and automatic expiry dates to prevent the powers being used indefinitely. The change matters because it lets businesses coordinate and cooperate during serious crises without facing competition law penalties, while still protecting ordinary people from exploitation.

What happens at this stage

The main debate on whether the chamber supports the broad purpose of the bill. Members speak to its overall merits and concerns rather than the fine print. The government outlines its policy intentions; the opposition and crossbench put their case. This is the stage that determines whether the bill proceeds at all.

Next: Consideration in Detail (House) or Committee of the Whole (Senate), where the bill is examined clause by clause