 The Resale Prices Bill was introduced to deny manufacturers and suppliers the power to stipulate the prices at which their goods must be sold by the retailer . At the time , up to forty per cent of goods sold in Britain were subject to such price fixing , to the detriment of competition and to the disadvantage of the consumer . Douglas @-@ Home , less instinctively liberal on economic matters than Heath , would probably not have sponsored such a proposal unprompted . However , he gave Heath his backing , in the face of opposition from some cabinet colleagues , including Butler , Hailsham and Lloyd , and a substantial number of Conservative backbenchers . They believed the change would benefit supermarkets and other large retailers at the expense of proprietors of small shops . The government was forced to make concessions to avoid defeat . Retail price maintenance would continue to be legal for some goods ; these included books , on which it remained in force until market forces led to its abandonment in 1995 . Manufacturers and suppliers would also be permitted to refuse to supply any retailer who sold their goods at less than cost price , as a loss leader . The bill had a difficult Parliamentary passage during which the Labour party generally abstained , leaving the Conservatives to vote for or against their own government . The bill received the royal assent in July 1964 , but did not become operative until 1965 , by which time Douglas @-@ Home , Heath and their colleagues were out of office . 
