Dáil Éireann debate -
Thursday, 30 Mar 2000

Vol. 517 No. 2

Written Answers. - Consumer Rights.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

64 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she has satisfied herself that adequate attention is being given to the provision of sufficient information to safeguard the rights of consumers in the context of the introduction of the euro; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9424/00]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. T. Kitt)

The main right of consumers which must be safeguarded in the context of the introduction of the euro is the right not to be overcharged for goods and services. This right is being safeguarded through ensuring that businesses sign up to either the national code of practice on dual display of prices which I launched on 9 June 1999 or to business organisations' own codes, provided that those codes have been approved by the Director of Consumer Affairs. Subscribers to the national code and to approved codes commit themselves to carrying out the changeover fairly and to seeking no advantage from the conversion. To date, the director has approved codes for IBEC, the Irish Petroleum Industry Association and the Booksellers Association of Great Britain and Ireland, Irish Branch.

Subscribers to either the national code or to approved codes will be entitled to display a logo. Display of the logo will inform consumers that the subscribers in question have agreed to undertake the commitments under the national code or approved codes; and the logo will include a contact point for use by consumers in any case where they consider that the commitments are not being adhered to.

Although dual pricing is already happening in many instances, both the National Code and approved codes provide for dual pricing at minimum from 1 October 2001, that is, three months before euro notes and coins come into circulation on 1 January 2002, until one month after the withdrawal of Irish notes and coins. Dual display of prices will form part of overall communications strategies designed to facilitate the changeover by consumers to the euro. In that connection, publicity about the national code and approved codes will be a feature of the euro campaign which is being planned by the Director of Consumer Affairs, and consumers will be urged to shop only where they see the logo displayed.

Promoting awareness of the euro generally among consumers is currently one of the key objectives of the European Consumer Centre, ECC, which is co-funded by the Director of Consumer Affairs and the European Commission. In June 1999 the ECC published a free guide, entitled The Euro and You: A Consumer's Guide. The guide aims to raise awareness among the public of some of the practical aspects of the changeover affecting consumers, including buying goods and services, payment of social welfare benefits, wages, banking services, pensions, insurance and travel. The guide was distributed nation-wide through, e.g., Consumer Information Centres and Money Advice Bureaux. As the first run, 15,000 copies has been exhausted, the guide has now been reprinted. In addition, the ECC recently published a shorter guide to the euro, which is also free of charge and which is aimed at helping older consumers in particular to become familiar with the new currency. This information leaflet features some typical grocery items, with prices in euro as well as in Irish pounds and it sets out the EU rules for carrying out conversions between Irish pounds and the euro.

Both publications are available too on the ECC's website, the address of which is www.ecic.ie.

I should mention that the euro section of the ECC's website has now been adapted, with assistance from the National Council for the Blind of Ireland, to be fully accessible to the blind and visually impaired.

The foregoing information is intended to give the Deputy an indication of actions taken to date in the interests of consumers. Further consolidation of the progress made can be expected, as the momentum towards the introduction of the euro increases. I am determined to ensure that there will be no information deficit for consumers, and that the changeover to the euro will not give rise to unwarranted price increases in any area.

Bernard J. Durkan

Question:

65 Mr. Durkan asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if the public and the private sectors are sufficiently engaged in the practice of dual display in the context of the introduction of the euro; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [9425/00]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. T. Kitt)

In my reply to Parliamentary Question No. 64 today, I have sought to inform the Deputy about the current state of play in relation to both the national code of practice on dual display of prices, and to complementary codes on dual pricing devised by business organisations and approved by the Director of Consumer Affairs. I understand that the Director of Consumer Affairs intends to hold discussions with the social partners, in particular IBEC, to ensure all business sectors have subscribed to, or intend to subscribe to, either the national code or an approved sectoral code. In addition, and quite apart from codes, I am sure the Deputy will have noted that dual display of prices is becoming increasingly common in both the private and public sectors, ranging from till receipts in supermarkets and bank statements to tax-free allowance certificates, utility bills, TV licences and so on. In terms of awareness-raising, I might mention two initiatives. The Forfás EMU Business Awareness Campaign has produced a number of new guides to assist further Irish businesses with preparations for changeover for the euro. Second, the European Commission has now launched the final phase of its euro communications campaign, which will focus on SMEs. All in all, the momentum towards dual pricing may be expected to gather pace this year and to intensify next year.