§ 7. Mr. Cryerasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection if she will introduce legislation to make exclusion clauses in contracts for services void.
Mr. Alan WilliamsAs soon as the Law Commissions' report is received, we shall consider urgently what changes are required.
§ Mr. CryerWill my hon. Friend accept that that answer is unsatisfactory and that the Law Commissions are a long time reporting? Will he further accept that only a very slight alteration would be required to the Supply of Goods (Implied Terms) Act 1973? Is he aware that capitalist organisations such as Pontin's and Butlin's will continue to evade their responsibilities through the fine clause in their contract, and will he please treat this as a matter of urgency to protect people in future?
Mr. WilliamsI treat this as a matter of urgency. The fact is that the Law Commissions are an independent body and are producing their own report. I accept my hon. Friend's points about the difficulty that this makes for consumers, but at this stage I cannot anticipate the form that the legislation will take. If it were a simple matter of modifying existing legislation we could do that, but it is far more complex in the service sector than in the goods sector.