The Shopping Centre Council of Australia (SCCA) has expressed alarm over the government’s proposed merger reforms, saying they are “poorly targeted” and add to the regulatory burden.

The draft reforms require mandatory notification to the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission (ACCC) for all mergers and acquisitions valued at $35 million and above, including shopping centre transactions.  

The SCCA believes such a requirement goes beyond the original intent to target market concentration and will unnecessarily capture other markets.

There is also a lack of clarity as to how the ACCC notification process would operate or the factors that will be considered, the council added.

“We’re really in the dark about the timing, the process and criteria as to how the ACCC will assess parties – which could capture one shopping centre transaction per week and seven bidding parties per transaction using current averages,” said SCCA chair Anthony Mellowes.

“Our industry is not opposed to sensible change, but the unnecessary regulatory burden and market uncertainty could be quite harmful,” added Mellowes.

The SCCA has made several recommendations to the government to ensure the reforms are properly targeted and that clarity is provided before any bill is tabled in the parliament.

• Further reading: ACCC welcomes commitment to tougher merger laws