The national retail and wholesale commission, to be chaired by the commerce minister by virtue of his office, should have just enough authority to enforce the law and relevant regulations - but not enough to be able to make discretionary decisions, which could be exploited by corrupt politicians for personal gain. Indeed local governments, including tambon administrative organisations and municipalities - which know their own communities much better than national or provincial commissions - should have a greater say in putting initiatives forward, monitoring and enforcing the retail business law.

The proposed law should state in clear terms that it only covers non-durable consumer goods, groceries, packaged foodstuffs and commoditised household products, among other items, to avoid confusion.

Once the possible loopholes and legal ambiguities have been dealt with, the Surayud government should give the law the go-ahead so that it can be scrutinised by the National Legislative Assembly and urgently passed into law.

The dispute between hundreds of thousands of small retailers on one side and 15 operators of multinational hypermarkets and supermarkets on the other, has dragged on for a decade. There is no point for the government - torn between the need to placate angry owners of traditional mom-and-pop shops and the importance of facilitating efficient retail trade - to continue hand-wringing.

Owners of small corner shops want the Surayud government to introduce stringent regulations to curb the rapid expansion of retail giants that threaten to wipe them out. They argue that the livelihood of hundreds of thousands of families is at stake and it is the responsibility of the government to make sure that they survive long enough to adapt and compete successfully in the face of an onslaught from retail giants.

On the other hand, operators of retail giants, which sell through huge discount stores and supermarkets, tend to regard whatever measures the government comes up with to help small retailers as being protectionist or anti-foreigner.

The Commerce Ministry has put a lot of effort into drawing up the Retail Business Act, which is designed to create a favourable business environment that will enable small traders to compete more efficiently without creating the impression that foreign businesses are being discriminated against.

In drafting the Retail Business Act, ministry officials understood that the best way to control the hypermarkets and supermarkets is zoning. If these big discounters are forced out of city centres, then both hypermarkets and small retailers will have maintained their respective comparative advantages. Consumers can then be expected to moderate their behaviour. For example, people doing weekly or big-item shopping will go to large out-of-town discounters while continuing to shop for small items and daily groceries from street-corner shops.

What's more, discounters located outside city centres are also less likely to cause traffic congestion, which creates air pollution that is bad for everyone. Legislation on hypermarkets should be based on rational decisions based on their social and environmental impact - not protectionism or xenophobia.

As for small retailers, the Retail Business Act should not be mistaken for a protective shield against competition or a safety net to guarantee their livelihoods. Rather, it should be considered a final wake-up call for them to improve and innovate in order to come up with new, more efficient business models to better meet the needs of new, value-conscious consumers. Ultimately, all retailers - big or small - will prosper or fail based on their ability to provide what consumers want.