S.I. No. 187/1955:

RESTRICTIVE TRADE PRACTICES (BUILDING MATERIALS) ORDER, 1955.

RESTRICTIVE TRADE PRACTICES (BUILDING MATERIALS) ORDER, 1955.

I, WILLIAM NORTON, Minister for Industry and Commerce, having considered a report of the Fair Trade Commission under section 7 of the Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1953 (No. 14 of 1953), into the conditions obtaining in regard to the supply and distribution of building materials, hereby, in exercise of the powers conferred on me by section 9 of the said Act, order as follows:--

1. This Order may be cited as the Restrictive Trade Practices (Building Materials) Order, 1955.

2. In this Order--

" the Commission " means the Fair Trade Commission ;

" discount " and " markup " include, respectively, a discount or markup however expressed;

" goods to which this Order applies " means building materials and components, including goods used for decoration or renovation or repairs but not including electrical goods, nails and screws or space-heating appliances, cookers, or any other such detachable components of a category not ordinarily fitted by a builder as part of the original equipment of a building ;

" supplier " means any person engaged in the business of manufacturing goods to which this Order applies or supplying or selling such goods to a user thereof or for resale.

3.--(1) A supplier shall not require or induce or attempt to require or induce any person (whether directly or indirectly, by agreement, threat, promise or any other means) to resell or offer for resale goods to which this Order applies--

(a) at a fixed price specified by the supplier or established by agreement or otherwise, or

(b) at a price not less than a minimum price specified by the supplier or established by agreement or otherwise, or

(c) at a fixed markup or a fixed discount specified by the supplier or established by agreement or otherwise, or

(d) at a markup not less than a minimum markup specified by the supplier or established by agreement or otherwise, or

(e) at a discount not greater than a maximum discount specified by the supplier or established by agreement or otherwise.

(2) Nothing in paragraph (1) of this Article shall prevent a supplier from advertising or otherwise specifying resale prices for goods to which this Order applies, provided such prices are maximum prices.

4. There shall not be any joint or collusive action (whether directly or indirectly or by way of agreement or understanding or otherwise) between two or more suppliers or between a supplier and a class of suppliers or between two or more classes of suppliers, which has or is likely to have the effect of ensuring that goods to which this Order applies will be resold or offered for resale--

(a) at a fixed price or at a price not less than a specified minimum price, or

(b) at a fixed markup or at not less than a specified minimum markup, or

(c) at a fixed discount or at a discount not greater than a specified maximum discount ; or

(d) on any other basis which involves eliminating or limiting competition in price between suppliers.

5.--(1) There shall not be any agreement, arrangement or understanding (whether induced by threat, promise or otherwise) between two or more suppliers or between a supplier and a class of suppliers or between two or more classes of suppliers, as to the prices at which goods to which this Order applies will be supplied for use or for resale or as to the discount to be allowed or the markup to be applied in respect of such goods.

(2) Paragraph (1) of this Article shall not prevent an individual supplier from coming to an agreement, arrangement or understanding with a customer as to the price at which such supplier will supply goods to which this Order applies to such customer for use or for resale or as to the discount to be allowed by such supplier to such customer in respect of the goods.

6. Where a supplier indicates or recommends a resale price for goods to which this Order applies such price shall not be binding as a minimum resale price.

7.--(1) A supplier shall not withhold goods to which this Order applies from any person by reason of--

(a) the prices charged or proposed to be charged by him on the resale of the goods, or

(b) his refusing to resell or offer the goods for resale on any basis mentioned in paragraph (1) of Article 3 or in Article 4 of this Order, or

(c) his reselling or offering to resell the goods--

(i) at a price less than a fixed or minimum price specified by a supplier or established by agreement or otherwise, or

(ii) at a markup less than a fixed or minimum markup specified by a supplier or established by agreement or otherwise, or

(iii) at a discount greater than a fixed or maximum discount specified by a supplier or established by agreement or otherwise.

(2) The provisions of paragraph (1) of this Article shall not apply in the case of a person who resells or offers for resale goods to which this Order applies at a price exceeding a maximum resale price specified by the supplier of such goods.

8. A supplier shall not withhold goods to which this Order applies from any person or discriminate against any person as to the terms on which such goods are supplied, because that person is or is not a member of an organisation or association or is not approved by an organisation or association or because that person's name appears or does not appear on any list not within the supplier's sole control, or because representations that supplies should be withheld from such person or be made available only on specified terms have been made by any person or by an organisation or association.

9. No person or combination of persons shall as respects goods to which this Order applies--

(a) coerce or induce or attempt to coerce or induce a supplier to withhold supplies from any person or class of persons or discriminate against any person or class of persons as to the terms on which such goods may be supplied to them,

(b) seek (whether by threat, promise or otherwise) to limit a supplier in his choice of channels of distribution or of customers or in the grant, subject to the provisions of this Order, of such trade terms as the supplier thinks appropriate to any person or class of persons.

10. No supplier shall be a party to any agreement, arrangement or understanding (whether induced by threat, promise or otherwise) which has or is likely to have the effect of limiting or restricting entry to trade in any goods to which this Order applies by persons who are willing and able to fulfil any conditions applied by a supplier under Article 11 of this Order to the acceptance of orders for such goods.

11 Imposition by individual supplier of terms and conditions for acceptance of orders.

11.--(1) Subject to the provisions of this Order, a supplier may apply to the acceptance of orders for goods to which this Order applies such terms and conditions, including conditions as to the size or frequency of such orders or, where the goods are supplied for resale, conditions as to the functions to be performed in or on the resale and as to services to be rendered to the purchaser, as are reasonable in the interests of efficiency and economy in production and distribution or are necessary in the legitimate interests of the supplier's business, provided such terms and conditions are applied in an equitable manner to all persons seeking supplies of such goods.

(2) A supplier shall, upon the request of any person engaged in or proposing to engage in trade in goods to which this Order applies make available to such person a statement of the relevant terms and conditions in operation.

(3) The Commission may, on their own initiative or following a complaint made to them, require a supplier to lodge with them any terms or conditions applied by him to the acceptance of orders for goods to which this Order applies and the supplier shall comply with such requirement.

(4) Nothing in this Article shall affect the power of the Commission to make fair trading rules relating to such terms and conditions.

12.--(1) No association, organisation or other combination, shall prepare, maintain, publish or issue or cause to be prepared, maintained, published or issued any lists of approved or non-approved persons or of persons classified in any way, which have or are likely to have the effect of limiting or restricting entry to trade in goods to which this Order applies or which are intended to be used as a basis for regulating or influencing the supply and distribution of goods to which this Order applies or the terms and conditions on which such goods will be supplied.

(2) No supplier or other person shall publish or issue or cause to be published or issued any such list as is referred to in paragraph (1) of this Article--

(a) which has or is likely to have the effect of limiting or restricting entry to trade in goods to which this Order applies, by persons who are willing and able to fulfil any conditions applied by a supplier under Article 11 of this Order, to the acceptance of orders for such goods, or

(b) which is intended to be used as a basis for regulating or influencing the supply and distribution of such goods or the terms and conditions on which such goods will be supplied.

(3) No person or combination of persons shall prepare, maintain publish or issue any lists, or do any other act, designed to secure a boycott of any supplier because such supplier has refused to do any act which a supplier is prohibited from doing by this Order.

13. There shall not be any agreement, arrangement or understanding (whether induced by threat, promise or otherwise) between two or more suppliers which provides for or facilitates the suppression of competition in goods to which this Order applies by the territorial division of the market.

14. No combination of suppliers shall be a party to any agreement, arrangement or understanding to limit, confine or afford preference in, their orders as respects goods to which this Order applies to any supplier or combination of suppliers outside the State.

15.--(1) A supplier shall not, as respects goods (of like grade, quality or quantity) to which this Order applies, differentiate by means of any rebate, refund, discount, credit or any other similar concession or by the provision of any service, facility or other consideration of value between one purchaser for resale and another purchaser for resale (being purchasers of the same class).

(2) Paragraph (1) of this Article shall not apply to differentiation, based on bona fide considerations of creditworthiness, by a supplier as to the time within which payment is to be made to him for goods supplied.

GIVEN under my Official Seal, this 28th day of September, 1955.

(Signed) WILLIAM NORTON,

Minister for Industry and Commerce.