Summary
The strengthening of consumer protection and the
promotion of an internal market are core objectives of the European
Union (EU). Both are crucial and should not be seen as alternatives,
but as complementary.
A review of the existing body of EU consumer law
(known as the consumer acquis) culminated in the European
Commission's publication of a draft Directive on consumer rights,
proposing to replace four of the existing Directives making up
the consumer acquis. The draft Directive's aim is to simplify
the existing regulatory framework and provide for a real business-to-consumer
internal market, balancing a high level of consumer protection
with the competitiveness of enterprises. This draft Directive
is the subject of our Report.
We consider that the Government should withhold agreement
from the proposal as drafted. We are unconvinced that it will
deliver the desired boost in trade across borders and we fear
that, in some instances, it may reduce the overall level of protection
currently afforded to consumers. The proposal should not be abandoned,
but some of the issues as highlighted in this report must be revisited.
That being so, we will continue to monitor progress on this dossier
to try to ensure that the potential benefits, for both business
and consumers, are realised.
Above all, further progress on the Directive should
await a more complete Impact Assessment, addressing issues such
as the lack of concrete statistics underpinning this proposal
and the exclusion of digital goods and pure services from its
scope.
We agree that there is a need to update the existing
Directives. This is not least due to inconsistencies between them
over key definitions and the fragmentation of the business-to-consumer
internal market that has resulted from Member States being able
to introduce provisions that go beyond the minimum set down in
the Directives. The Commission's solution is to apply the principle
of "full harmonisation", whereby Member States' national
rules will no longer diverge from those set at the EU level. We
acknowledge that this could increase legal certainty for both
consumers and businesses. Nevertheless, we would prefer to see
a more targeted use of this principle, harmonising certain aspects
but allowing Member States room for manoeuvre in other areas.
Negotiations on the proposal are still at an early
stage and there is thus ample time to address these concerns.
We firmly believe that benefits will accrue to business from legislation
which genuinely has the consumer at its heart.
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