2009考研英语阅读理解精读100篇.docVIP

TEXT ONE Tesco? is prepa?ring a legal? battl?e to clear? its name of invol?vemen?t in the dairy? price?-fixin?g scand?al that has cost consu?mers ￡270 milli?on. Failu?re to prove? that it had no part in collu?sion with other? super?marke?ts and dairy? proce?ssors? may land it with a fine of at least? ￡80 milli?on. The Offic?e of Fair Tradi?ng (OFT) said yeste?rday that Asda, Sains?bury’s and the forme?r Safew?ay, plus the dairy? compa?nies Wisem?an, Dairy? Crest? and Chees?e Compa?ny, had admit?ted being? in a carte?l to fix price?s for milk, butte?r and chees?e. They were fined? a total? of just over ￡116 milli?on as part of a lenie?ncy deal offer?ed by the watch?dog to compa?nies that owned? up quick?ly to anti-compe?titiv?e behav?iour. Offic?ials at the OFT admit?ted priva?tely that they did not think? they would? ever disco?ver which? compa?ny or indiv?idual? had initi?ated the prici?ng formu?la. But the watch?dog recog?nises? that at the time super?marke?ts were under? press?ure from polit?ician?s and farme?rs to raise? the cost of milk to save dairy? farmi?ng, thoug?h it is not certa?in that money? found? its way to farme?rs. The OFT claim?ed in Septe?mber that it had found? evide?nce that the retai?l chain?s had passe?d futur?e milk price?s to dairy? compa?nies, which? then reach?ed a fixed? price? among? thems?elves?. The avera?ge cost to each house?hold is thoug?ht to be ￡11.25 over 2002 and 2003. Price?s went up an extra? 3p on a pint of milk, 15p on a quart?er of a pound? of butte?r and 15p on a half pound? of chees?e. There? is no direc?t recom?pense? for consu?mers, howev?er, and the money? will go to the Treas?ury. The Natio?nal Consu?mer Counc?il gave warni?ng that the admis?sions? would? dent consu?mer confi?dence? in leadi?ng high stree?t names? and that peopl?e would? becom?e scept?ical of their? claim?s. Farme?rs For Actio?n, the group? of farme?rs that has led prote?sts over low milk price?s since? 2000, is seeki?ng legal? advic?e on wheth?er it