JOHNSON UNVEILS #10M PACKAGE TO PUT CONSUMERS FIRST Consumer Minister Melanie Johnson today unveiled a £10 million package of measures to crack down on rogue traders, boost Trading Standards services and give a better deal to consumers. Speaking at a national conference for Trading Standards professionals in Birmingham, the Minister outlined an action plan to improve consumer protection, including: - Taking tougher action to crack down on rogue traders - Improving training and skills for Trading Standards officers - Giving greater help and information to consumers, particularly in e-commerce; and - Modernising Trading Standards services Melanie Johnson said: "We are determined to give a better deal for consumers, giving them more choice, better services and competitive prices. Trading Standards officers around the country do a fantastic job, helping us to crack down on cheats and identify scams. We want to help them to be even more effective. "Today I am announcing a new National Performance Framework to help modernise trading standards services, and the forthcoming Enterprise Bill will increase the legal powers available to trading standards, for example by extending the use of Stop Now Orders which rogue traders in their tracks." "And this year's #10 million of funding from the Modernisation Fund, will help consumer protection bodies to implement these initiatives, clamp down on rogue traders who cheat the public, and make a real and immediate difference to people's lives." The Minister will highlight examples of projects which have already been made possible by the Modernisation Fund, including a website called 'ripofftipoff.net' which allows members of the public to report rogue traders to Trading Standards departments. Launched at the end of last year, the site has already received over 7,000 hits. New initiatives supported by the funding include: - #5 million for improving coordination between the army of over 200 Trading Standards departments in the UK; for better enforcement; and for improving consumer confidence in E-commerce. Money will also support the roll-out of Stop Now Orders* - which prevent unscrupulous traders from breaking consumer law. - #2 million for Consumer Support Networks across the UK, which bring together Trading Standards, Citizens Advice Bureaux and other advice organisations to deliver better help for consumers and business. - #1.5 million for DTI Scholarships for Trading Standards officers, and distance learning materials leading to the Diploma in Trading Standards. - #1.5 million for projects to prevent accidents in the home. Last year, DTI supported 12 home safety projects around the UK, including a Home Safety Check targeting children under 5 in low income families, and an interactive education centre aimed at children between 6 and 11. The New Performance Framework has been designed to help Trading Standards departments to be more effective and improve their services to consumers and business. Already piloted by Trading Standards services in 19 regions, the framework will introduce core performance standards, while at the same time reflecting the specific needs of local communities. The proposals have been welcomed by Trading Standards bodies: In a joint statement, David Sibbert, Chair of the Trading Standards Institute's Management Board and Derek Allen, Executive Director of LACOTS, said "We are pleased that the Government has recognised the significant contribution that effective trading standards services make to national and local communities, making them safer for people and better places in which to do business. "This performance framework means that local services will be individually and collectively more accountable for the good work that they do. They will be more visible for the commitments they give to tackle consumer fraud and enforce the range of fair trading laws that help the wellbeing of local communities." Notes to Editors 1. #10 million will be distributed as part of the Modernisation Fund, launched last year to boost the powers of consumer watchdogs and help them crack down on rogue traders and put a stop to scams. Projects have been set up nationwide, improving advice and information to consumers and business, strengthening consumer safety, and giving valuable support to Trading Standards departments. Case studies of selected projects are attached at Annex A. 2. More information about the Modernisation Fund is available from the DTI website at www.dti.gov.uk 3. The National Performance Framework for Trading Standards, which has been developed with the Trading Standards Institute, LACOTS, the Office of Fair Trading, the National Weights and Measures Laboratory and 19 pilot authorities, is being launched at the symposium and will be implemented in 2002/03. 4. There are 1.500 trading standards officers across the country. Their duties include advice to consumers and business, inspections, enforcement, investigations, provision of information, sampling, testing and licensing duties. ANNEX A CASE STUDIES OF PROJECTS SUPPORTED BY THE MODERNISATION FUND - Consumercomplaints.org.uk This website, developed in the Midlands by the MidCOTS* group, is launched at the LACOTS event on 24 January. It has been developed as part of a wider project that aims to pioneer new Trading Standards skills, techniques and methods of regulating e-commerce. The consumer complaints website offers a single point of access for consumers who wish to complain or make an enquiry to their local Trading Standards Authority. It also enables consumers outside the UK to make complaints or enquiries about UK traders. Since going live in October 2001, the website has received consumer complaints from as far afield as the USA, Norway, New Zealand and Japan. * Midlands Coordinating Group on Trading Standards. The group is a partnership of eleven Trading Standards Authorities from the Midlands: Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Herefordshire, Sandwell, Solihull, Stoke, Telford, Walsall and Wolverhampton. - Ripofftipoff.net With support from the Modernisation Fund, Trading Standards services in Leicestershire and Northamptonshire have developed a website (www.ripofftipoff.net) to enable consumers or businesses to report rogue traders who they suspect may be ripping-off the public. The website allows people to make reports anonymously, giving Trading Standards valuable information about cowboy builders, Arthur Daly car dealers, loan sharks and dodgy Del Boy traders. Launched just before Christmas, the site has already received over 7,000 hits, and cases have been passed on to authorities around the country. The site is part of a bigger project to build a scam database. This will be accessed through a secure internet site and allow trading standards to check out existing scams and find out who else is investigating them. - Scottish Motor Vehicle Testing Unit The Unit was developed by Dundee City Council, and began working across 12 Scottish Local Authority areas in February 2001. The unit uses a team of undercover investigators which visits garages around the country, testing the safety of cars on sale, the standard of car servicing and the roadworthiness of vehicles which are available for hire. Investigators have visited more than 230 garages across Scotland, checking over 650 vehicles. On average, up to 40% of cars for sale have been found to be unroadworthy. The standard of MOT testing and car servicing has also been found wanting - of the 125 checks undertaken, more than 40 have been proved to be unreliable, with some garages not carrying out repairs properly, or charging for work which is unnecessary. - Greater Gwent Project on Debt Five local authorities in Greater Gwent have joined forces to look into the extent of consumer debt, particularly among the poorest communities, and to examine ways of dealing with loansharks and rip-off homeworking schemes. The first ever survey on indebtedness was carried out in five Local Authority areas, with 32,000 households visited in the most deprived areas. Less than half of respondents who used credit borrowed from banks, with many having to use debt collectors or loan sharks. 60% said they were concerned about high interest rates - some were being charged up to 140% APR - and 44% had been forced to take out more loans in an attempt to pay off existing debts. The survey revealed that many would never be able to repay their debts. The information has provided a valuable insight into the causes and levels of debt, and has enabled authorities to start developing ways of tackling the problem. Reputable credit unions have been persuaded to provide alternative credit to those in the poorest communities; up to 20 illegal 'loansharks' have been revealed and are now being investigated, and prosecutions are underway. The project has also examined the numerous 'homeworking' schemes which target the poorest communities and uncovered examples of operators refusing to pay workers, or exploiting its workforce. * Stop Now Orders allow consumer protection bodies to pursue rogue traders by taking out court injunctions to prevent them from breaking the law. Failure to comply with a Stop Now Order will be punishable by a fine or imprisonment.