Clause 18
Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill
9:30 am
Mark Prisk (Shadow Minister (Small Businesses and Enterprise), Trade & Industry; Hertford and Stortford, Conservative)
These two probing amendments seek to establish just how open the Government will be in requiring reports. We believe that maximum transparency is vital. It is vital for the council if it is to have authority and it is also important for the consumer as a whole. The Secretary of State should not therefore be in a position to cherry pick which reports get published or, for that matter, to be seen to cherry pick. The way in which a Secretary of State might reasonably make a decision is important.
We have just discussed the obvious controversy of the post offices, but there are other areas where there will be tension and there is an understandable problem. Take the question of food safety and consumer information. Quite understandably a Government may say that there are serious and complex issues about food safety. I recognise, as most hon. Members probably do, that there is no such thing as no risk. But in the area of food safety there will always be a problem because it can often get misreported. It is often overblown in the media and can frighten people. There will be a natural tension there and Ministers may wish to think carefully about how information on food safety issues is released. Obviously the NCC will have a narrower remit. Its purpose will be to ensure that it can produce consumer information, of whatever character.
The purpose of amendment No. 17 is to establish the NCC’s independence. As I say, these are probing amendments. I want to explore with the Minister how the Government would approach the issue, because it is an important area on which we need some clarity. When the Bill is passed and becomes law, there is a clear understanding about how the Government would approach that kind of more awkward situation in which Ministers will be acting, quite reasonably, on scientific advice, but where there will be a potential—this is what we are concerned about—that the ability to have flexibility may not be in the interests of the Government of the day.