is facing internal pushback over plans to threaten the break-up of supermarket giants Coles and Woolworths, with senior Liberals expressing concern about populist divestment moves being led by the Nationals and the Greens.has learnt some moderate MPs and even frontbenchers have privately expressed concerns that court-enforced break-up powers would be bad for business and jobs and risk undermining the Coalition’s free market economic credentials.
Mr Dutton moved to end co-operation with the Greens, bringing the policy design work into the joint Coalition party room and pointing to “market failure” and property acquisition by companies including Coles and Woolworths. At that time, a push by the Nationals to extend the laws to supermarkets lacked support among Coalition MPs.
On Thursday, opposition finance spokeswoman Jane Hume warned the Greens’ legislation risked becoming an “ideological crusade”.