A Price Control Commission has been set up to look into the price of food on the Island to ensure consumers are protected from “unwarranted increases’, the Premier announced today.This morning in the House of Assembly Paula Cox said: “Mr Speaker, Honourable Members will recall that in the budget brief for the Ministry of Finance in March 2011, I made the following statement: ‘Recently, the prices of food staples in global commodity markets have risen in worrying leaps. The Ministry of Finance has considered the implications for Bermuda and the policy options available to Government.“‘Given that Bermuda imports substantial proportions of the food consumed on Island, we are in the position of ‘price takers’. In these circumstances, a regime of price controls could have unintended consequences including the disruption of supply lines.”She added: “Accordingly, Government will use the powers of enquiry available under the Price Commission Act 1974 to obtain information from food importers about their import costs and margins to ensure that consumers are protected from unwarranted price increases.”“Indeed, subsequent to this statement, both the Bermuda Public Services Union and the Bermuda Industrial Union have publicly echoed my own concerns.“Mr Speaker, I am pleased to announce that the Price Control Commission has been empanelled and gazetted. The members of the Commission are Lucia Peniston, Anthony Richardson and Daniel Reece.”The Commission has specific terms-of-reference which include:1. Obtaining the relevant economic data from the Department of Statistics to identify the essential goods and services that should be the focus of the enquiry;2. Inviting interest groups, consumers and individual Bermudians, who wish to provide data, statistics and other information, to make submissions to the Commission;3. Inviting input from wholesalers; supermarkets; convenience stores, discount stores, other businesses and services that provide essential goods and services;4. Consulting with the various unions including: the Bermuda Trade Union Congress, the Bermuda Industrial Union, the Bermuda Public Services Union, the Fire Services Union, Bermuda Union of Teachers, the Prison Officers Union, etc;5. Consulting with the Bermuda Small Business Development Corporation, and employer groups including the Chamber of Commerce, Bermuda Employers Council, etc;6. Obtaining information from shipping companies and other importers regarding the current cost of shipping, both air and freight;7. Producing a report for the Minister recommending how Government can assist in ensuring that consumers can get the most reasonable price for essential goods and services.Ms Cox added: “Mr Speaker, we must ensure that consumers are protected from unwarranted price increases while suppliers continue to remain profitable. As a result, this will be a collaborative team effort between Government, suppliers, retailers and consumers.”