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14 Jun 2004 : Column 718W—continued

Cold Calling

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what measures she is putting in place to tackle cold calling; and if she will make a statement. [178414]

Mr. Timms: The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) published their market study report into Doorstep Selling on 12 May. The report is being carefully considered and any proposed legislative changes will be the subject of thorough consultation.

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of the scale of cold calling; and if she will make a statement. [178415]

Mr. Timms: The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) have investigated Doorstep Selling as a whole and published their market study report on 12 May. The report includes an estimate that the overall number of bogus trading cases related to cold calling is in the region of 15,000 each year with an average transaction of £2,500.

Crown Post Offices

Mr. Andrew Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry (1) for how long commitments contained in public notices of the proposed transfer of Crown post offices to Primeco that services will not be adversely affected have effect; and what guarantees are written into agreements with Primeco and other companies that services will be unaffected in future years; [177747]
 
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(2) which Crown post offices have been transferred to Primeco in each of the last 12 months; and which are the subject of proposals to transfer to Primeco. [177745]

Mr. Timms [holding answer 9 June 2004]: This is an operational matter for Post Office Ltd. and I have therefore asked the Chief Executive to reply direct to the hon. Member.

Electricity Generation/Supply

Mr. Tynan: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what assessment she has made of likely levels of (a) domestic electricity charges and (b) transmission charges under British Electricity Trading and Transmission Arrangements. [178319R]

Mr. Timms: The DTI has carried out an analysis of the possible impact of the British Electricity Trading and Transmission Arrangements (BETTA) as part of the Energy Bill Regulatory Impact Assessment (RIA) (www.dti.gov.uk/energy/leg and reg/acts/ria2.pdf). Benefits to domestic customers are likely to accrue mainly to those in Scotland. We do not expect any appreciable effect to customers in England and Wales in the short term as BETTA does not substantially change the market in these regions.

The RIA estimated that a combination of increased electricity wholesale competition and a re-allocation in the way transmission charges are calculated could see annual domestic electricity bills in Scotland falling by around £13 per customer, all other things being equal. Customers who switch suppliers could make further gains.

Transmission charges under BETTA have not been finalised and as such all calculations are estimates. The Great Britain System Operator designate, National Grid Company (NGC), produced a recent consultation "GB Transmission Charging: Initial Methodologies" published on 8 April 2004. This sets out two scenarios of what transmission charges might be in 2005–06 following BETTA's planned introduction. This consultation is available at: www.nationalgridinfo.co.uk/betta/gb consultations.html

NGC will submit final transmission charging proposals to the Industry Regulator, Ofgem, for approval later this year contingent on the SoS designating the relevant licence conditions once legislative powers are available.

Equality

Keith Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what practical steps the Government are taking to address issues of equality. [176491]

Jacqui Smith: Since 1997 the Government have worked to increase opportunity and tackle discrimination and disadvantage through a wide range of legislation, policies and programmes. This includes introducing new legislation outlawing discrimination in employment on grounds of sexual orientation, religion and belief (and in due course age); strengthening existing legislation on disability discrimination; strengthening the Race Relations Act including introducing a duty on public bodies to promote race equality; and publication of a draft Disability Discrimination Bill, which will further extend rights and opportunities for disabled
 
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people. We are also continuing to improve the workings of the Equal Pay Act and the Sex Discrimination Act, for example, through the introduction of the Equal Pay questionnaire and through action to streamline the complex rules of procedure relating to equal value tribunal cases. Further major steps are in progress or planned.

The White Paper "Fairness for all" published on 12 May 2004 proposes the creation of a single Commission for Equality and Human Rights. This step reflects the first comprehensive review of our statutory equality institutions for quarter of a century and makes clear the Government's determination to place equality and human rights at the heart of society. The CEHR will champion equality and diversity, tackle discrimination robustly, provide support for the full breadth of discrimination legislation and promote a culture of respect for human rights. It will be able to serve all the communities covered by discrimination legislation more effectively than at present, while retaining focus, knowledge and expertise relevant to particular groups.

EU Legislation

Malcolm Bruce: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will list the occasions when representations have been made to her Department highlighting possible over-implementation of EU legislation, stating in each instance (a) the EU directive, (b) the individual or organisation making the representation and (c) the aspect of over-implementation; and if she will make a statement on the Government's response. [177736]

Jacqui Smith [holding answer 10 June 2004]: The information sought cannot be provided as representations received by the Department in relation to possible over-implementation of EU legislation are not held centrally.

However, the Department seeks to ensure that the principles of better regulation are observed when implementing EU legislation.

EU Social Chapter

Mr. Ben Chapman: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the benefits of the EU Social Chapter for the residents of Wirral, South. [177688]

Mr. Sutcliffe: The residents of Wirral, South have benefited from the EU Social Chapter by having their employment rights extended to include:

the right to parental leave which gives parents the right to 13 weeks unpaid leave at the birth or adoption of a child;

the entitlement of part-time workers to the same pro-rata terms and conditions of employment as full-time workers, thereby removing any discrimination and improving the quality of part-time jobs;

the provision that once a prima facie case has been made in an employment tribunal claim, the burden of proof is placed on the defendant (usually the employer), who will need to demonstrate that sex discrimination has not occurred;

rights under the Fixed Term Work Directive that provide for the fair treatment of fixed term workers and prevent abuse of fixed term contracts;

 
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rights under the European Works Council Directive which requires companies with at least 1,000 employees in total and at least 150 workers in each of the two member states, to establish structures for consulting workers on issues that affect them.

In addition, the Information and Consultation of Employees Directive to be implemented in the UK by March 2005, establishes a right to new minimum standards for workforce communication and involvement in large firms.

Government Websites

Michael Fabricant: To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if she will make a statement on the compliance of Government websites with Web Accessibility Initiative guidelines. [177107]

Mr. Alexander: I have been asked to reply.

The Government have adopted the Web Accessibility Initiative guidelines and encourages compliance through the provision of extensive guidance and good practice. Our publications 'Guidelines for UK Government websites' and the 'Quality Framework for UK government Website Design', are available online www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/ e-government/webguidelines. Copies will be placed in the Library. Compliance is the responsibility of individual departments and agencies.

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