I've been looking at 'The Citizen' news journal published by Citizen's Advice. Glad to see it led by a foreword they kindly asked me to write. Its inclusion helps to symbolise the emerging importance of the new and ever stronger relationship that will exist between trading standards and Trading Standards Institute with Citizen's Advice and CABx together with Citizen's Advice Scotland.
This is the new world being prompted by the 'consumer landscape' proposals of Vince Cable and his BIS team. First we need to secure the future of the successor service that CAB will have to construct from Consumer Direct. This has become part of the backbone of trading standards and cannot be lost.
It is clear to me though that from the top down Citizen's Advice and CAS are as determined as we are to see an even better successor in place by April 2012 latest. The new chief executives of both organisations and their teams continue to impress and that was reinforced when I met again with Gillian Guy at Citizen's Advice yesterday. She clearly has all the right qualities to lead her organisation into its extended future and also to help lead their new partnership with trading standards.
Showing posts with label Citizens Advice. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Citizens Advice. Show all posts
Friday, 21 January 2011
Friday, 12 November 2010
A Leap of Faith?
It's been quite a week - again. Tuesday saw the House of Lords debate the 2nd reading of the Public Bodies Bill. A Lords constitutional committee had earlier been extraordinarily critical of the Bill and the proposed use by Government of secondary legislation to ignite its quangos bonfire and limit Parliamentary debate - the so called Henry VIII process.
On Tuesday scores of Peers queued up to say their piece on the Bill, mostly expressing concerns about the Bill itself but also about the many public bodies affected by proposed abolition or change. Trading standards, Citizens Advice, local government, and Consumer Focus all featured. There was even a quarrel over the definition of what is a consumer. There was clearly considerable concern across the floor over the proposed loss of consumer law enforcement from the OFT.
Is this really a sensible time to place even greater reliance on local authorities who are even as I type having or choosing to slash their trading standards budgets? Lord Borrie, a previous OFT Director General quoted my words from our latest TSI TS Today publication: 'a leap of faith, I just hope it isn't a leap in the dark'.
Time will tell but I sense we are only at the beginning of this quantum leap.
On Tuesday scores of Peers queued up to say their piece on the Bill, mostly expressing concerns about the Bill itself but also about the many public bodies affected by proposed abolition or change. Trading standards, Citizens Advice, local government, and Consumer Focus all featured. There was even a quarrel over the definition of what is a consumer. There was clearly considerable concern across the floor over the proposed loss of consumer law enforcement from the OFT.
Is this really a sensible time to place even greater reliance on local authorities who are even as I type having or choosing to slash their trading standards budgets? Lord Borrie, a previous OFT Director General quoted my words from our latest TSI TS Today publication: 'a leap of faith, I just hope it isn't a leap in the dark'.
Time will tell but I sense we are only at the beginning of this quantum leap.
Wednesday, 27 October 2010
Business and the consumer landscape
TSI has a very good relationship with the business community and its representative organisations. This mirrors the trading standards ethic of being a shared champion of business and consumers. Our TSI Annual Conference and Exhibition (in 2011 at the Bournemouth International Centre 21-23 June) is a high impact affair and any visitor would immediately see the support it and we enjoy from the broad spectrum of the private enterprise sector together with those in the public and third sectors.
This Government has staked the country's economic and employment prospects on business and it is important that the sector plays its fullest part in how we progress and implement the BIS plans for the new consumer landscape including driving new levels of consumer empowerment via advice, information, education and ensuring competition flourishes and rogues are eliminated from local and national markets. Trading standards is central to all this and business will be as concerned as consumers to see that local trading standards services are not themselves dis empowered by cuts by councils to their already stretched budgets.
So yesterday I started to widen my discussions with business on the importance of it being the third pillar in the new consumer landscape being scoped by Vince Cable and his BIS team. Trading standards and Citizens Advice may be the two pillars he has so far spotlighted but business has to be embraced as the third if the new model is to work. I am sure that business will be up for the challenge and in the week that saw both the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader at a CBI Conference it is worth reiterating the Prime Minister's and the Chancellor's clarion call that 'we are all in this together'.
This Government has staked the country's economic and employment prospects on business and it is important that the sector plays its fullest part in how we progress and implement the BIS plans for the new consumer landscape including driving new levels of consumer empowerment via advice, information, education and ensuring competition flourishes and rogues are eliminated from local and national markets. Trading standards is central to all this and business will be as concerned as consumers to see that local trading standards services are not themselves dis empowered by cuts by councils to their already stretched budgets.
So yesterday I started to widen my discussions with business on the importance of it being the third pillar in the new consumer landscape being scoped by Vince Cable and his BIS team. Trading standards and Citizens Advice may be the two pillars he has so far spotlighted but business has to be embraced as the third if the new model is to work. I am sure that business will be up for the challenge and in the week that saw both the Prime Minister and Opposition Leader at a CBI Conference it is worth reiterating the Prime Minister's and the Chancellor's clarion call that 'we are all in this together'.
Monday, 25 October 2010
Building the new consumer landscape begins......
When Vince Cable issued his BIS consumer landscape review statement earlier this month he made it very clear that the future was to be built on the twin pillars of Citizens Advice and Trading Standards.
TSI and its members delivering trading standards across the local government spectrum have always had a strong and productive relationship with Citizens Advice and with the nearly 400 CABx spread across England and Wales. Similarly with Citizens Advice Scotland and its member CABx.
Following the Secretary of State's announcement however, that relationship must reach new levels of collaboration and productivity. We must seek to ensure the transfer of the Consumer Direct GB helpline to Citizens Advice serves to be even more supportive of consumers, and trading standards services and the business community. They have a reliance on its information and data in the improvement of business behaviour towards consumers and the enforcement of consumer and other criminal law against the rogue element.
Today I met with the CEO of Citizens Advice and together we have begun to create the foundations of the new consumer landscape with our two organisations at its heart. We shall need to embrace many others, including local government, the private sector and our colleagues in the devolved nations. We are confident of meeting the challenge set by the coalition Government but we shall need its wholehearted support. There is little time to waste.
TSI and its members delivering trading standards across the local government spectrum have always had a strong and productive relationship with Citizens Advice and with the nearly 400 CABx spread across England and Wales. Similarly with Citizens Advice Scotland and its member CABx.
Following the Secretary of State's announcement however, that relationship must reach new levels of collaboration and productivity. We must seek to ensure the transfer of the Consumer Direct GB helpline to Citizens Advice serves to be even more supportive of consumers, and trading standards services and the business community. They have a reliance on its information and data in the improvement of business behaviour towards consumers and the enforcement of consumer and other criminal law against the rogue element.
Today I met with the CEO of Citizens Advice and together we have begun to create the foundations of the new consumer landscape with our two organisations at its heart. We shall need to embrace many others, including local government, the private sector and our colleagues in the devolved nations. We are confident of meeting the challenge set by the coalition Government but we shall need its wholehearted support. There is little time to waste.
Wednesday, 20 October 2010
Consumer landscape announcements
We welcome continuity of the limited funding to be cascaded to local government for national threats. Clearly a trading standards that is adequately and appropriately funded can step up to the plate to deliver its new found responsibility. At the same time, however, the capability and impact of local trading standards services and practitioners is going to be dependent upon councils adequately funding them. No easy task for councils regardless of the leap of faith shown by the Secretary of State.
The Institute is a long-standing but progressive organisation that seeks to support modern local government together with consumers and businesses. Our members are spread across the public and private sectors which positions us well to understand the demands on both.
Modern high street and internet driven markets need confident, informed consumers if they are to work well and if rogues are not to flourish. Trading standards is central to recovering and ultimately flourishing local, national and indeed web based global market place. Similarly to the economic and safe wellbeing of consumers. This is no time to do other than reinforce the capacity and capability of trading standards and both central and local government in our view must continue to work well together to ensure that happens.
We now must look to work even better with our colleagues in Citizens Advice, with councils and with those representing our key business and consumer interests to test the Secretary of State’s proposals, use the planned consultation exercise, and ensure what emerges works.
The Institute is a long-standing but progressive organisation that seeks to support modern local government together with consumers and businesses. Our members are spread across the public and private sectors which positions us well to understand the demands on both.
Modern high street and internet driven markets need confident, informed consumers if they are to work well and if rogues are not to flourish. Trading standards is central to recovering and ultimately flourishing local, national and indeed web based global market place. Similarly to the economic and safe wellbeing of consumers. This is no time to do other than reinforce the capacity and capability of trading standards and both central and local government in our view must continue to work well together to ensure that happens.
We now must look to work even better with our colleagues in Citizens Advice, with councils and with those representing our key business and consumer interests to test the Secretary of State’s proposals, use the planned consultation exercise, and ensure what emerges works.
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