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Consumer Policy

The Government is committed to ensuring consumers get a fair deal, value for money, safe and high quality products, and greater choice. This is not only good for consumers, it is also good for British business.

Business needs demanding, confident consumers who encourage higher standards and innovation. It needs effective enforcement of consumer standards, to drive out the rogues who compete unfairly.

The Government has already taken measures to protect consumers and ensure they get a good deal. Now it is taking further action to strengthen safeguards for consumers and ensure greater choice and better prices through effective competition.

The Government also wants to see a stronger consumer voice, both here and in Europe, helping to shape policy.

Consumer Strategy

The Consumer Strategy, ‘A Fair Deal For All – Extending Competitive Markets: Empowered Consumer, Successful Business’, provides details of the Government’s commitments to meeting our target of reaching the level of the best. They include:

• Promoting open and competitive markets;
• Empowering consumers;
• Simplifying the law for the benefit of consumers and business;
• Making it easier to resolve problems; and
• Ensuring a fair and safe trading environment.

Comparative Study

The Centre for Competition Policy at the University of East Anglia completed a report in August 2008, in which they assess whether BERR has met the consumer aspect of its PSA 3 target, which is ‘to promote fair competitive markets by ensuring that the UK framework for competition and for consumer empowerment and support is at the level of the best by 2008’. A link to this report can be found on the right-side of this page.

A comparative study of consumer policy regimes identifying how the UK’s consumer policy regime compared with those of our OECD partner countries was carried out in 2003. It is available for download on the right. The two Report documents contain a summary and individual country comparisons respectively, while the Study document focuses on the legal and institution frameworks.

Consumer Conditions Survey

The Consumer Conditions survey, which is the first of its kind in the UK, was conducted by Ipsos MORI and designed to assess consumer conditions in a wide range of UK markets. It was commissioned to support the development of the UK’s consumer policy and give businesses insights into consumer perceptions on where to focus raising standards.

The study assesses consumer conditions based on consumer ratings of 45 markets using indicators of confidence and transparency: the ease with which consumers can compare quality and price; the choice available; whether the purchase lived up to expectations; the protection of consumer rights, and the trustworthiness of advertising in each market.

The department will factor the findings of the consumer report, such as the views on consumer protections and trust in advertising in different markets, into the consumer law review.

E-Bulletin

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