CTSI HAS ITS SAY Some of the institute’s contributions to government policy debate Plans to establish a Scottish Consumer Taskforce Consultations Call for evidence: plans to establish a Scottish Consumer Taskforce Consumer, Competition and Regulation Unit, Directorate for Economic Development, Scottish Government, June 2017 CTSI welcomes the initiative to create a Scottish Consumer Taskforce to deal with uniquely Scottish issues and to bring the numerous bodies in the Scottish consumer landscape closer together. Brexit negotiation details will have a huge impact on consumer issues, so the taskforce must address strategic issues, as well as operational matters agged up by consumer complaints and other intelligence sources. A core weakness of the UK Consumer Protection Partnership (CPP) is the lack of effective representation of local authority trading standards services – more than 190 services the UK. In Scotland, a manageable number of services can be represented by the heads of service organisations – such as the Society of Chief Of cers of Trading Standards in Scotland or the CTSI Scottish branch – linking to the of cers working on consumer issues on the ground and ensuring local authority trading standards services feel a part of the taskforce and contribute to its solutions. Signi cantly, this would ensure that the taskforce has a realistic view of the capacity to focus on enforcement, along with advice, advocacy and redress. As in the UK – where the CPP has created closer relationships and a forum to raise issues – a speci c Scottish taskforce would complement the activities of its many consumer organisations, ensuring regular communication, identifying any issues not being tackled effectively and helping reduce duplication by avoiding independent working on similar topics. CTSI believes a taskforce can promote greater understanding between members on the remits of the other organisations; personal contact with a speci c partner-organisation staff member improves bilateral relations, helps overcome barriers to data sharing, and increases con dence in sharing sensitive information with partners. It also offers a forum to discuss issues seen as too dif cult for any one organisation to tackle, ensuring that these are not missed. Evolving into a united voice and champion for consumer matters, it could advise government on policy or legislative change. Response compiled by Melissa Dring, former CTSI strategy director For more details and to contribute to consultations such as these, visit www.tradingstandards.uk Credits To share this page, You might also like Images: iStock / Marco_Piunti click on in the toolbar CTSI has its say – July 2017