HL Deb 12 January 1998 vol 584 cc156-7WA
Lord Tanlaw

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether tradesmen selling anything which could be described as "millennium goods" and which display the date 2000 AD will be liable for prosecution under the Trade Descriptions Act 1968.

Lord Simon of Highbury

The Trade Descriptions Act 1968 makes it an offence for a trader to apply false or misleading statements to products. It is for local authority trading standards departments to decide whether to prosecute under the Act in a given case.I am aware that there are different views as to when the new millennium should be celebrated. However, given that the year 2000 is the year in which most people intend to celebrate, it would seem highly improbable that trading standards officers would consider prosecution appropriate in the circumstances described in the noble Lord's Question.