HC Deb 20 February 1990 vol 167 cc614-5W
Mr. Austin Mitchell

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals he has for requiring registration, training qualifications and insurance funds for estate agents.

Mr. Forth

I have no such proposals. The reasons why legislation on these matters would not be appropriate are set out in the report published in December 1988 of the Director General of Fair Trading's review of the Estate Agents Act 1979 and in the report published in June 1989 of my review of estate agency.

Mr. Austin Mitchell

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what proposals he has for bringing estate agents within the terms of the Trade Descriptions Act.

Mr. Forth

As I told the hon. Member for Carlisle (Mr. Martlew) on 21 June 1989 at column333, I have asked the Director General of Fair Trading to review the arguments for extending the Trade Descriptions Act 1968 to misdescriptions of property. His report is expected shortly.

Mr. Austin Mitchell

To ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what requirements for registration, professional competence tests and licensing exist for estate agents in(a) France, (b) West Germany and (c) Holland; and what proposals he has for bringing British requirements into line with other European Economic Community countries.

Mr. Forth

Information on the requirements for estate agents in European Community countries has recently been published by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. I have placed relevant extracts from its publication "1992 A General Practice Guide To the Single European Market" by Michael Treays FRICS in the House of Commons Library. My right hon. Friend has no proposals for introducing such requirements.