Consumer protection body faces the axe

Friday, 15 October 2010 12:00

Consumer Focus, the public body that champions shoppers' rights in England, Scotland and Wales, faces being abolished as part of the government's "bonfire of the quangos".

Yesterday (October 14th), Cabinet Office minister Francis Maude said 192 organisations that receive state funding but are not under the control of Whitehall departments would be axed in a bid to save money.

The coalition's review said the government will look at "ongoing sectoral reviews" and issue a consultation early in 2011 on plans to scrap Consumer Focus and move its functions to the charity Citizens Advice.

In a statement, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which funds Consumer Focus, said the move would streamline protection services and improve delivery at the local level.

"Consumers are represented by a bewildering array of public, private and voluntary bodies, which often duplicate efforts to inform, educate and advise consumers of their rights," said business secretary Vince Cable.

Responding to the government's announcement, Consumer Focus chief executive Mike O'Connor CBE said he was "immensely proud" of the body's work, adding that in the past two years, it has secured a £70 million refund on bills for energy customers and initiated cash ISA reforms that will save more than £15 million a year.

Labour's shadow minister for the Cabinet Office Liam Byrne has called on the government to reveal whether the cost of closing the 192 quangos will be bigger or smaller than the savings achieved.

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