Clause 10
Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill
5:30 pm
Ian McCartney (Minister of State (Trade & Investment), Department of Trade and Industry; Makerfield, Labour)
The amendment is very similarto amendment No. 44. To be fair to the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives, they have both tabled similar amendments in the Lords during general debate and on Report. I apologise to the Committee if some of the things that I say are similar to what has been said, but I must be consistent in my response to do justice to the amendment.
As we made clear during discussion on amendment No. 44, the new council has been given three statutory core functions, and the amendment relates to the information function. We have a clear expectation that the council will make use of all three functions effectively and transparently. However, the amendment again raises the question of whether we should or will attempt to require the council to undertake all the functions at the same time, or set out its core functions and leave the new body to determine how and when they are exercised according to priority and need and in accordance with its forward work programme.
The hon. Member for Hertford and Stortford raised a fair point, not just intellectually but in practical terms. If we give the council three statutory core functions, what certainty and bottom line will there be? Will it be clear what the three functions are and how they operate? Will someone looking at the work programme be able to say, “Yes, this body is taking seriously all aspects of its functions”? Attached to those functions are two other things: financial resource and human resource. The council must have the capacity to put all three things together transparently.
My point should not be taken in isolation but with all the discussions that we have had on other clauses. They should be pieced together to get the picture. There will be a statutory function, a consultation process for the work programme and consultation and transparency about financial resources and which parts fall to Government and to other appropriate bodies. For those parts that fall to other appropriate bodies, to ensure transparency in the system, those bodies must say how and how effectively those resources are spent, and what their capacity is to meet the budget. The other locks are not just the annual report but the report on how the NCC is carrying out its work programme and its capacity to make determinations when the programme needs to change to meet circumstances.
We have chosen the hon. Gentleman’s second option. We cannot compel the council to discharge the core functions, because the functions do not stand by themselves. We cannot say that the council shall or must provide advice and information without saying to whom and about what it must provide it. The council must make that choice. It goes back in the end to the matter of independence, but independence does not mean an excuse to do nothing, or to turn a blind eye to a blatant injustice for the consumer in the marketplace.
I have no doubts whatever about how we are establishing the NCC. It will bring together the redress schemes and the panoply of other measures in the Bill. The NCC’s whole sense of direction when established will be that of an advocate, with a strong ethos of acting in the consumer’s interest. I am certain that in all circumstances, it will give the consumer the benefit of the doubt on the issues brought before it, whether policy issues or individual or collective complaints needing redress. It is therefore important that we give the council the opportunity to do so, which is why we have chosen this option.
On amendment No. 11, what we are trying to achieve is the creation of a strong body that can influence and bring about change for the better on consumers’ behalf. We are giving it the right to advocate for individuals or collective groups of consumers where something goes wrong, but we also want to give it as a preventive strategy the ability to influence policy outcomes to ensure that the marketplace operates effectively on the consumer’s behalf, and that those who provide goods and services have an ethos and a way of managing their business that protects the consumer’s interests and not just those of their own organisation. It is important that we provide the opportunity to act on behalf of consumers. To achieve that, there will be certain functions and circumstances in relation to which an autonomous approach can be taken. An example is the new council’s powers under clause 17 to prepare and publish
“a report in relation to any matter falling within the scope of its functions.”
However, the new body also needs to be able to work with and through others. A prime example involves the relationship to consumer education. That is an area in which the Office of Fair Trading has a statutory function under section 6 of the Enterprise Act 2002 to
“publish educational materials or carry out other educational activities”
and to
“support...such activities or the provision by others of information or advice.”
The new council would be expected to contribute to that process with a view to advocating the consumer interest in the provision of education and information by the OFT or other parties. That is very important. It is an innovation. The council will have not only an influence over its own role and remit, but a specific influence over the remit and role of others who have a duty towards consumers. That is vital and is why we have drafted the function as we have. It permits the council not only to facilitate the dissemination of information and advice by others, but to disseminate information itself. That is vital if the council is to be out there and seen there, marching forward on behalf of consumers. The ability is not just to put information out itself, but to ensure that others do so as well. That is innovation.
Amendment No. 11 would remove the ability of the new council to operate in this fashion, which is why I will resist it. I assume that it will not be accepted. I assume that it was tabled to enable me to give the Committee assurances about what the clause means and the role that we expect the NCC to play in operating the clause in a practical way on behalf of consumers.