CHRIS'S QUIZTIME & QUIZERAMA

No Quiz, No Pool, No TV, No Real Ale BUT a Carvery - just what we all needed! B****CKS

The Competition Commission will not take action against supermarkets selling alcohol at below-cost, despite a two-year inquiry into the grocery sector.

A new independent ombudsman will resolve disputes between suppliers and retailers, the commission’s final report published today confirmed.

And changes to the planning system will make it harder for one company to dominate an area.

But despite alcohol being identified as one of the main products that stores discount on, there was no mention of action.

The report also acknowledged that shops use some products as loss leaders “to tempt customers into the store at certain times of the year, such as Christmas, or for events such as the World Cup”.

A previous version of the report had revealed that during the 2006 World Cup total discounted sales by Tesco, Sainsbury’s, Morrisons, Asda and Somerfield were a staggering £38.6m.

Peter Freeman, the commission’s chairman, said: "We have looked extensively and listened very carefully when looking at all the matters raised with us but our overriding concern throughout has been whether the market is working well in the interests of consumers.

"In many important respects, consumers are receiving the benefits of competition, such as value, choice, innovation and convenience, but we need to take appropriate action to address those areas where they could be served better and where their interests could be damaged in future."

Freeman said previously it had found no evidence of “predatory” pricing strategies – where retailers deliberately undercut other local firms to put them out of business.

He added: “We are competent to judge competition issues, but not social issues like alcohol. It’s not us, sorry.”

Mark Hastings, the British Beer & Pub Association’s communications director, said supermarkets should be “prepared to do their bit” on being more responsible on alcohol sales.

Alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) have finally been given the full green light in Parliament today after months of delays.

The government won a vote among MPs by 240 to 158 this afternoon to have the regulations covering ADZs adopted.

This gives councils the go-head to apply for an ADZ.

But Tory Home Affairs minister James Brokenshire said ADZs, which have been branded unnecessary and “unduly bureaucratic” by peers, still faced a “rocky road”.

“The regulations are fundamentally flawed and if any get adopted I would like to see how these weaknesses are addressed,” he said.

Brokenshire also pointed to the fact that the polluter pays measure was a manifesto pledge during the last General Election. “It was probably felt that they could not perform another U-turn,” he said.

He also questioned the suggestion that 30 councils were going to implement an ADZ in the first year.

“When I asked the Home Office before Christmas how many councils had expressed an interest they said none,” he said.

Pubs in an ADZ could face charges of £100 a week to help pay for extra policing.

A spokeswoman for the Local Government Association said it did not currently have details of how many councils will apply for ADZs, but a report will be published in the next three to four weeks which will say.

She added: “The LGA has had serious misgivings about ADZs and about how the set-up costs will be recovered.

“It may well be a piece a legislation that is may not be very user friendly for councils.”