At last ? Britons are put before bosses: The stopping of the Sainsbury's-Asda 合併 should be 拍手喝采する, says ALEX BRUMMER

Published: 01:04 BST, 26 April 2019 | Updated: 01:07 BST, 26 April 2019

e-mail

The abrupt end to the ￡12billion Sainsbury's and Asda fandango should be 拍手喝采する by every 消費者 and food 生産者 in the land.

Extravagant （人命などを）奪う，主張するs made by the 取引，協定's main proponents that a 合併 would 配達する price 削減s of ￡1billion for 消費者s have been forcefully 拒絶するd by 競争 regulators.

If it had been 認可するd, Sainsbury's-Asda would have created a 小売 behemoth bigger than 現在の market leader Tesco and 削減（する） the number of big supermarkets from four to three. 必然的に, this would have 少なくなるd choice for 消費者s.

Sainsbury's failed in its argument that the 取引，協定 was 決定的な for it to challenge German no-frills retailers Lidl and Aldi, online 競争相手 Ocado, newcomer アマゾン and takeaway 配達／演説／出産会社／堅いs Just Eat and Deliveroo.

長，指導者 (n)役員／(a)執行力のあるマイククーデター and Asda boss Roger Burnley underestimated the 競争 and Markets 当局 (CMA), whose new chairman, former Tory MP Andrew Tyrie, has taken a more 消費者-friendly approach, putting community 利益／興味s above those of 商売／仕事.

The 競争 and Markets 当局 has 封鎖するd Sainsbury's ￡12 billion 合併 with Asda

The CMA 結論するd that 'shoppers and 運転者s would be worse off' under the 取引，協定. It 警告するd bluntly that millions of Sainsbury's and Asda shoppers would have 直面するd higher prices, lower 質 and いっそう少なく choice.

意味ありげに, 農業者s are relieved that their 関心s were 注意するd and the danger of 'abusive' market 力／強力にする has been 避けるd. Food 生産者s were 深く，強烈に worried that a 巨大（な） Sainsbury's-Asda would いじめ（る） small 供給者s, squeeze the price it paid for raw goods and 延期する支払い（額）s.

The 取引，協定's 崩壊（する） is an 当惑 for クーデター, who was ビデオd humming crassly 'We're in the money' when it was first 発表するd.

株 in Sainsbury's have fallen 20 per cent this year and it has been losing market 株 to 競争相手s, with クーデター（刑事）被告 of spending too much time on the 提案するd mega-取引，協定.

Paradoxically, Asda ? owned by the world's largest retailer, Walmart ? has managed seven 連続する４半期/4分の1s of 増加するd sales and market 株 in the UK, 反抗するing 予測s that 設立するd supermarkets will struggle against the rise of German discounters and online 挑戦者s.

City 専門家s believe Sainsbury's recently 任命するd chairman, ツバメ Scicluna, will have little choice but to 取って代わるクーデター, considering that the failed 合併試みる／企てる has cost the company tens of millions of 続けざまに猛撃するs in 合法的な and （a）忠告の／（n）警報料金s and has left staff 恐れるing for their 未来. Predictably, Sainsbury's has 非難するd the CMA for 結論するing that prices would have risen if the 合併 had gone ahead. It （人命などを）奪う，主張するd that the innate competitiveness of the grocery market 保証（人）d to keep prices at a 最小限.

The 監視者（人命などを）奪う，主張するd that the 取引，協定 would result in a '相当な少なくなるing of 競争'

Its 経営者／支配人s have 個人として表明するd 疑問 about the 質 of the 分析 and the independence of the thinking of the CMA パネル盤 that reviewed the 事例／患者.

最終的に, the 崩壊（する） of the 取引，協定 has far-reaching 関わりあい／含蓄s for British 商売／仕事 and 消費者s. In 最近の１０年間s, 競争当局 have tried to 避ける干渉するing in the 解放する／自由な market. Several 取引，協定s, such as Tesco's 引き継ぎ／買収 of the 卸売業者 Booker and BT's absorption of 動きやすい競争相手 EE, have been nodded through with little 干渉，妨害.

However, the arrival of Tyrie, a 退役軍人 of the ありふれたs 財務省 select 委員会, where he was the 天罰（を下す） of the big banks, has meant a more 法廷の approach.

In 影響, this means that any 未来合併計画（する）s between the country's biggest supermarkets are very ありそうもない to happen.

Also, the CMA has sent a powerful signal to companies that 直接／まっすぐに serve 顧客s ? a 警告 that they will 直面する高障害 if they want to proceed with 取引，協定s benefitting 株主s at the expense of 消費者s and 供給者s.

As such, the 判決，裁定 against the Sainsbury's 取引，協定 is a 目印 one 代表するing a 重要な rebalancing for 解放する／自由な-market capitalism.?

ASDA Argos