§ Mr. Roy Hughesasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what representations he has received from the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Electrical Appliances concerning the demand for plugs to be fitted to appliances before sale; what conclusion he has reached; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. FletcherI have not received any direct representations from the Association of Manufacturers of Domestic Electrical Appliances (AMDEA) about the fitting of plugs to appliances before sale. I have, however, seen a copy of a letter from AMDEA to the director of environmental health of Newport borough council. AMDEA explained in this letter that there were still 25W manufacturing problems with the fitting of plugs to appliances and that a totally reliable plug was needed for use in mass production assembly techniques before these problems could be overcome.
It has been suggested to me from time to time that the safety of consumers would be improved if domestic appliances had 13 amp plugs fitted to them before sale to the public. However, I do not think that the time for introducing legislation to make this mandatory because some 15 per cent. of households in the United Kingdom still have electrical supply systems which do not take 13 amp (square pin) plugs.