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Public Bodies Bill [HL]

As a number of my noble friends have said, there are real concerns about the viability of the coalition Government’s proposals on the vital issue of consumer representation. As my noble friend Lady Hayter reminded us, Consumer Focus was created under the Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Act 2007. It was a new organisation, carefully designed with good planning and as a result was implemented with widespread support. It has become the acknowledged champion for consumers in England, Wales and Scotland, and for postal customers in Northern Ireland. I think my noble friend Lord Borrie talked about the enthusiasm of the chief executive of Citizens Advice for the new role, and I reflected on the comments of the chief executive of Consumer Focus, who said: "““Consumer Focus has achieved big wins for consumers in just two years—including a £70 million energy bill refund and cash ISA reforms saving over £15 million a year. We’ve delivered our biggest results in the last few months but the biggest challenges for consumers are ahead, with major reforms to the energy, post and financial services markets … What matters now, is that the transfer happens in a way that works in consumers’ interests. The expertise and knowledge that has enabled us to fight for consumers must not be lost. Changes must not be at the expense of the public’s rights and needs—which organisations like Consumer Focus were created to protect””." That is an important and interesting comment. There has not been much reference to the role of trading standards. The response states: "““Trading Standards is at the centre of the Government’s proposed new regime. Local challenges to fair trading will continue to be handled at local authority level, but national and regional ""consumer challenges will be handled by one or more dedicated, expert teams, within Trading Standards with work co-ordinated nationally for this purpose””." Perhaps the Minister in her reply can expand on that national role of trading standards. It also states: "““In respect of Scotland and Wales, specific arrangements may need to be made””." In the light of this debate, that is perhaps a bit of an understatement. I am conscious of the time, so I will cut my contribution much shorter than I had intended—for which relief, much thanks; I see the Minister nodding. I cannot help remembering, given the history of inflation that we have heard tonight, negotiating a wage increase of about 23 per cent during that period in the 1970s. I was reminded of those heady days. I shall make a couple of quick points in summation. At the moment, Consumer Focus receives approximately one-third of its funding from BIS. The remainder is gained from a mixture of licence funding paid by energy suppliers and the postal industry and funds that it may raise itself—for example, through externally funded projects. I add my voice to the cause and ask the Government whether they yet know how much it will cost to outsource those services to a local community group. What proportion of that money will come from the Government? How will the plan help to ensure that the body performing those functions is more accountable? A thread through what, as a noble Lord already said, has been an authoritative and interesting debate is that question of accountability either to the people that the body seeks to serve or to the funding providers—in the case of the Government, the funding providers being the British public. In the interests of time, I will let the Minister respond.