Britain's consumer watchdog said on Thursday it planned to refer the country's supermarkets to the Competition Commission for a full probe that could force the grocery giants to abandon some of their expansion plans, Reuters reported. In a draft ruling, the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) said competition between the big supermarkets had done much to improve the lot of the consumer, but the UK planning regime and land acquired by some supermarkets for future development served as barriers to new players seeking to enter the market. John Fingleton, chief executive of the OFT, told a news conference the reversal of a decision last year not to make a referral was based on a fresh look at the sector and a body of evidence built up over the past few months, and not on a rising clamour of protest from lobby groups. "The decisions are based on market evidence. It's not a popularity contest. Vocality is not an issue," he said. Shares in market leader Tesco Plc initially fell sharply on the news, while shares in rivals J Sainsbury Plc and Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc were relatively steady. Dominant players also include Asda. --More 22 21 Local Time 19 21 GMT
