Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Yvonne Fovargue and Vince Cable

Thursday 8th January 2015 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

I worked actively and closely with my colleague in the Department of Health on this issue. There are two issues involved: minimum wage enforcement and ensuring that we have tougher legislation to deal with some of the practices that operate in that sector, such as zero-hours contracts. At the moment, we are looking more widely at employment rights for groups of people who are classified as workers but who do not currently enjoy those rights. The care sector is one such group.

[Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)]

2. What recent assessment he has made of the effect of copycat websites on consumers.

Consumer Rights Bill

Debate between Yvonne Fovargue and Vince Cable

Tuesday 28th January 2014 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

Many of these issues are dealt with through small claims courts. I recognise that there is often a difficulty in enforcing claims in the small claims courts. I am not sure that legal aid is the central issue there. It is a question of ensuring that, when court remedies are imposed by the courts, they enforce them and there are proper fines on companies that do not yield at that point.

The measures on the civil courts seek to ensure that there are properly specified rights aimed at giving consumers their money back, giving them more information and increasing business compliance. We must try to ensure that the measures are reasonable and proportionate, and that there is flexibility. Let me give a concrete example, because this is a slightly abstract and legalistic issue. Under a more flexible regime, a furniture retailer that has made false promises on delivery dates may not only have to give consumers their money back, but have to advertise in the press or social media what they are doing to put the situation right. They may also be required to change their internal systems to ensure that there is no repeat of the breach of the law. Essentially, the changes will enable enforcement to take place in a much more flexible way that reflects the circumstances of particular companies and customers.

[Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)]

How will the Bill address the issue of companies going into liquidation and what happens to their creditors? We have all seen what happened with the Farepak scandal. Consumers do not understand the difference between part-payments, deposits and prepayments. Will that be clarified in the Bill?

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Yvonne Fovargue and Vince Cable

Thursday 8th July 2010 Commons Chamber

[Vince Cable]

There certainly was a problem of serious overcharging, and it was pursued through the courts by the Office of Fair Trading. I am going to meet the director general of fair trading very soon, and I shall try to establish whether any action needs to be taken by the Department, as opposed to through the legal channels that have been pursued so far.

[Yvonne Fovargue (Makerfield) (Lab)]

What assessment has been made of the impact of front-line services in local citizens advice bureaux, such as my own in Makerfield, of the £2.5 million cut to Citizens Advice?