Political situation
Written by: Zhai Ruimin
2020-08-18 21:43
Last update date: 2020-08-18 21:43The government today (18) details the second round of the "Protecting Jobs" program. Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor said that as the supermarket business volume has not been affected by the epidemic, the two large supermarkets, Baijia and Wellcome, will receive payment from September to November. During the subsidy period, it is necessary to provide customers with discounts and supermarket coupons for disadvantaged groups.
The Democratic Party’s Sham Shui Po District Councillor and member of the Consumer Council Yuan Haiwen criticized that supermarkets have clearly benefited during the epidemic and should no longer receive government subsidies. Instead of asking supermarkets to provide price reductions, it is better to distribute subsidies directly to those in need, such as full Early childhood education and freelance workers affected by the epidemic. The DAB Legislative Council Member Zheng Yongshun suggested that the two supermarkets should give back at least half of the employment guarantee allowance to the society, including donations to the Care Fund, to support citizens who are unemployed, underemployed or in need of temporary support during the epidemic.
While supermarkets have benefited from the epidemic, the government's practice of providing subsidies has been criticized. (Profile picture)
Supermarket sales value increased by 10% for several months
Looking at the retail sales data in the first half of the year, the value of supermarket sales continued to rise compared to the same period last year, with a rise of more than 10% over several months. In the list of guaranteed jobs, Parkn’s Supermarket received more than 161 million yuan in subsidies and promised more than 8,000 salaried employees; Dairy Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Wellcome Supermarket, received a subsidy of 399 million yuan and promised salaried employees More than 20,000 people.
While supermarkets have benefited from the epidemic, the government's practice of providing subsidies has been criticized. In addition, the government has not clearly stipulated the rate of price reduction, and supermarkets are "risky" in providing feedback. Yuan Haiwen questioned that large-scale supermarket chains will inevitably "exhaust the amount of exposure" when reducing prices, and there are many ways to reduce prices. First add and then reduce, and rebates such as app points are also counted as discounts. He suggested that the government should require supermarkets to account for the actual number of beneficiaries and the total amount of price reductions, but the best way is to prohibit applications from industries whose businesses are not affected, so as to avoid creating additional administrative costs.
If the price reduction is not effective, the price reduction may have "side effects"
Zheng Yongshun also questioned that the government has not put forward specific measures on how to make supermarkets launch discounts. He is worried that the price reduction will not be enough to benefit the public. He suggested that supermarkets should reduce the price of daily necessities by at least 10%. He also worries that the price cuts in supermarkets will prevent people from shopping in small shops, and the small shops will be stuck in mud.
The public is certainly concerned about whether supermarkets will "falsely reduce prices," but if the discounts are large, another problem will arise. The sale of prices in supermarkets is bound to attract a rush of buying. If the shortage of necessities such as tissues and food reappears, it may make citizens who have been troubled by the epidemic for many months more worried. The gathering of a large number of people in the indoor space of supermarkets also violates the anti-epidemic principle of social distancing. These problems need to be solved by the government.
▼The third wave of measures such as the government's extension of the gathering restriction order and the ban on eating in the evening market ▼
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Wellcome replied that it has reduced the price of its food brand products by 20% and will donate 100,000 meal coupons to people in need in society. In the mobile app that launched the rewards program earlier, customers will also be offered more discounts to give back to the local community.
Pokka responded that in response to the epidemic, market conditions and internal demand in other countries, the incoming prices and freight rates of many imported products have risen sharply, and they have tried their best to bear the rising costs to maintain stable and reasonable product retail prices.
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