§ Mr. Adleyasked the Secretary of State for Industry how many prosecutions have been made under the auspices of his Department, or made known to his Department, of contravention of the marking orders made in July by his Department for approved and non-approved attachments to telephones; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mr. ButcherNo prosecutions have been brought by the Department of Industry, nor am I aware of prosecutions brought by others. It is open to anyone to take such action if they see fit. Enforcement of the orders is primarily in the hands of local authority trading standards offices, who have the relevant power under section 19 of the British Telecommunications Act 1981, and the Department is aware that they have been following up complaints about infringements reported to them. I am urgently considering what further action should be taken. The main focus initially will be to increase consumer awareness of the significance of the marks by appropriate publicity but I am not ruling out the bringing of prosecutions by the Department of Industry where I am convinced that such action might prove to be effective in ensuring more widespread compliance with the orders.