Tag Archives: consumer protection

  • Courtesy JPC

    Sky News Interview : Adam Boulton

    Talking with Adam Boulton about the many complex challenges with Brexit negotiations, the importance of protected food names for the British Economy and why we should remember that Brexit is ‘if’ not ‘when’, until we know what kind of deal is on offer.

  • courtesy Mpande via Wikimedia Commons

    When in roam…

    Starting this week, an EU-wide agreement has once again slashed the cost of using phones and tablets abroad. Gone are the days when Brits returned home from a short break on the continent to the shock of a massive phone bill. The EU has capped the cost of mobile roaming at a lower level year […]

  • courtesy Nutrition Facts via YouTube

    Consumer fraud in the labelling of fish in the EU

    Question A new study by Oceana has again highlighted the seriousness of consumer fraud in the labelling of fish in the EU. The study has pointed out that in Brussels in particular, the ‘error’ labelling average is 31.8% (95% in the case of bluefin tuna). Oceana had already reported in 2013 that 33% of the […]

  • courtesy Jamie via Flickr

    Directory scams

    Question Is the Commission aware that the aggressive tactics of directory scams is continuing, with threatening letters being sent to victims who are being misled into signing what appears to be confirmation of the accuracy of the description of their company entered into the directory, but which also contains, in the small print, a concealed […]

  • Speaking in plenary

    eCall: a measure with widespread support

    A brief clip of one of my contributions to the debate about eCall.

  • courtesy Amada44 via Wikimedia Commons

    eCall

    Yesterday, the European Parliament debated one piece of EU legislation that almost everyone considers a good idea — everyone, that is, except the Conservatives, the French Front National, and presumably UKIP, none of whose members bothered even to speak in the debate. The proposal is to include an inbuilt ‘eCall‘ mechanism in new car manufacturing […]

  • courtesy Raimond Spekking via Wikimedia Commons

    CE marking

    Question Is the Commission satisfied that the CE regulations are being enforced with equal vigour across Europe, and if not, what action does it intend to take? Answer The Commission is aware of the differences in the implementation of the current product legislation requiring manufacturers to affix the CE marking across Europe. For this reason […]

  • Courtesy of Tomasz Sienicki via Wikimedia Commons

    Revenge of the directory scams

    From correspondence I’ve had with constituents recently, it seems that an old scam has resurfaced. It was previously known as the European City Guide, but seems to have recently reinvented itself as the “United Kingdom Industry Commerce Directory”. Under various names, this shady organisation sends an official-looking form to small businesses, voluntary organisations and even […]

  • courtesy NASA

    Cape Verdean investment

    Question Hundreds of UK citizens have invested in a complex named Vila Verde on the Cape Verdean Island of Sal. The developer, Tecnicil, was funded by the Portuguese bank Banco Espirito Santo (BES). There were strong safeguards in the contracts to protect the bank’s investment if the project was not completed. Tecnicil has now gone […]

  • Photo by Sarahluv on Flickr (https://www.flickr.com/photos/sarahluv/with/15172373939/) licensed under Creative Commons

    Suck it up, Henry

    A lot of dust has been kicked up in the last couple of days about new Europe-wide rules on hoovers. As usual, things are not quite what the media is making them out to be. The European Commission does a nice job of laying out the facts about the new measures, which are (surprise!) somewhat […]

  • Wherever we may roam

    MEPs in the European Parliament voted overwhelmingly today to scrap mobile phone roaming charges across Europe. Assuming this decision is confirmed by elected governments when they meet in the EU council, from December next year it will cost no more to make or receive a call, send a text or use mobile data when abroad […]