§ 46. Mr. Hendersonasked the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what progress he hopes to make in the field of consumer affairs in forthcoming European Council meetings.
§ Mr. HowardProgress will, as always, depend on the degree of agreement reached between member states. However, we intend to pursue the goal of a true internal market with all the benefits that it will bring to consumers, and hope that this can be achieved without the need for complex harmonisation of law.
In particular, we wish to ensure that the European Commission's communication "A new Impetus for 494W Consumer Protection" will be fully discussed at forthcoming Councils of Ministers, including one of Consumer Affairs Ministers which we intend to hold during the United Kingdom presidency, and that as a result a realistic programme of action can be agreed. The most important parts of the Commission's communication are the proposals to ensure consumers' physical safety and the plans to stress that the consumer interest should be taken into account in all Community policies. The Government welcome this change in emphasis towards greater weight being given to the consumer interest in matters such as agriculture and transport and see this as an important step towards making the Community work to the benefit of all consumers.