HL Deb 28 October 1993 vol 549 cc103-4WA
Lord Gainford

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they intend to amend United Kingdom legislation on prescribed quantities and what action they propose to take in relation to current EC legislation on prescribed quantities and unit pricing.

Viscount Goschen

Under the existing national legislation certain prepacked goods, including products such as biscuits, breakfast cereals, pasta and bread, must be produced in specified standard sizes. This restricts choice for the consumer—the standard sizes may not always suit their needs—and can impose an unnecessary burden on business.

Accordingly, the Government are today issuing a consultation document to interested parties about abolishing these requirements where this would not conflict with mandatory EC legislation.

With similar concerns in mind, the Government also propose to discuss with the European Commission ways of reducing the burden of the EC's legislation on standard sizes and on related unit pricing. This requires retailers to display the price per unit of measurement for certain categories of prepacked goods where they are not made up in standard sizes.