Noticeboard

, "6":"Noticeboard Update: National Trading Standards Sanctions Information Database (SiD) NMEDIA / SHUTTERSTOCK Since April this year, the Sanctions Information Database (SiD), operated by the National Anti-Fraud Network (NAFN), has been the system for trading standards to record all enforced civil and criminal sanctions data. In total, 753 records have been added by officers, comprising impending actions against 1,730 legal entities. The database also contains all records transferred from the Central Register of Convictions and the Consumer Regulations website. Entries onto SiD have the dual function of fulfilling the statutory duty to notify the Competition and Markets Authority, where applicable. Access has been granted to other enforcement agencies, including the Financial Conduct Authority, Civil Aviation Authority, Information Commissioners Office, OFCOM and OFGEM, within the confines of the relevant data protection legislation and appropriate legal gateways. From 1 December, the address system will be derived from the Ordnance Survey database, which is larger and updated more regularly than the Royal Mail database currently used. Early in the new year, further improvements to functionality and appearance will be made, including a new pop-up help feature, which will enable officers to access assistance without having to open a separate tab, as is now the case. In addition, the help facility enabling officers to email queries direct to NAFN, which has generated 22 enquiries since June, will still be available for officers to use. Any queries on this or any other matters relating to SiD should be directed to Liane McNabb, at liane.mcnabb@actso.org.uk There is to be a single measure for wine throughout BEN STANSALL / GETTY IMAGES our realm This year marks the 800th anniversary of the Magna Carta the Great Charter one of the most famous documents in the world and arguably the origin of our weights and measures system. Originally issued on 15 June 1215 by King John of England as a practical solution to the political crisis he faced, the Magna Carta established for the first time the principle that everyone including the king was subject to the law. Most of the 63 clauses granted by King John dealt with specific grievances relating to his rule. However, buried within them were a number of fundamental values that both challenged the autocracy of the king and proved highly adaptable in future centuries. Most famously, the 39th clause gave all free men the right to justice and a fair trial. Some of Magna Cartas core principles are echoed in the United States Bill of Rights (1791) and in many other constitutional documents around the world, as well as in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) and the European Convention on Human Rights (1950). It also appears to be the first time that weights and measures have been written into law, too, as the quote below demonstrates: There is to be a single measure for wine throughout our realm and a single measure for ale, and a single measure for Corn, that is to say the London quarter, and a single breadth for dyed cloth, russets, and haberjects, that is to say two yards within the lists. And it shall be the same for weights as for measures. Source: British Library A full interview with Mike Weatherley is planned in TS Review, but what do you think? Should trading standards funding be ring-fenced? Does the profession need an IP director general? Fill out our quick questionnaire here. TEN COMMITMENTS Former adviser to the Prime Minister, Mike Weatherley MP has devised the , intellectual property (IP) priorities that he hopes will be included in the Conservative Partys manifesto. Weatherley submitted his 10 IP commitments to Oliver Letwin MP , chairman of the Conservative Policy Review. These include ring-fenced funding for trading standards, a review of the overall structure of the Intellectual Property Office, and the introduction of an IP director general or IP coordinator/adviser. Weatherley said: At the moment, the level of trading standards support from each local authority is discretionary and consequently hugely variable. TELL US YOUR VIEWS TS Today chief presses Miliband on future of trading standards director, expressed the that the profession Labour Party, says he is importance of trading would escape further unable to guarantee that standards for businesses cuts, despite it already trading standards budgets and consumers. However, suffering on average would be safe under a Miliband while a 40 per cent reduction Labour government. PETER MACDIARMID / GETTY IMAGES Ed Miliband, leader of the sympathetic was able to in budget and a 50 per provide little reassurance cent cut in staff. At a press conference in December, Suzanne Kuyser, TS Today editor-in-chief and TSI communications Tap to listen Can I give you a guarantee about the budget for trading standards today? No I cant "