The statement came one week after Opposition Leader Peter Dutton called for consumers to boycott the retailer over its merchandise decision,suggesting the company has not been cowed by the political furore.
“I think Australians should boycott Woolworths,” Dutton said on January 11. “It’s a bad decision,it damages Woolworths,it embarrasses the employees and I think the prime minister,frankly,needs to call it out.”
The company stood by its decision,however,and a YouGov survey released on Thursday suggested only 20 per cent of Australians supported the boycott idea.
“Our poll shows that Mr Dutton has picked the wrong focus,with only one in five voters backing his boycott call,” said YouGov director of government Paul Smith,citing the results from the survey of 1532 people over the past week.
The research found that 66 per cent of Australians said their main concerns were excessive price rises,while 14 per cent said they supported Woolworths’ decision not to stock the products.
The controversy flared again on Thursday after radio station 2GB reported that Woolworths’ reconciliation policy meant it would fly the Indigenous flags,while Sky News claimed the retail giant would fly the flags outside stores.