Competitive market ‘Vital’ to newsagents – MP
The local MP pledged his support to the ‘Save Our Newsagents’ campaign at a special parliamentary event in Westminster, to highlight the plight of newsagents who find they have only one newspaper distributor to choose from. One newsagent is closing every day, as a result of higher charges by newspaper distributors.
Mr Rogerson has written to the Office of Fair Trading to demanding an investigation.
Commenting, Dan Rogerson said,
“Like post offices and local stores, traditional newsagents are the backbone of our community. They deliver a vital service and are a friendly face that many people rely on every day.
“Yet many newsagents are facing an uphill struggle to survive. Like any business, they rely on competition among their suppliers to keep prices down. The large market shares owned by a small number of distributors are stifling that competition, and with it the network of independent newsagents across the country.
“There is effectively a duopoly between two distributors, neither of which encroach substantially on the other’s patch. That creates a monopoly for distributors in particular areas. I have written to the Office of Fair Trading to urge them to investigate, so that competition can be restored.”
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