HC Deb 14 July 1997 vol 298 cc69-70W
Mrs. Gillan

To ask the President of the Board of Trade whether the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Consumer Affairs has made formal complaints to the Portuguese and Greek Governments about timeshare operations. [8475]

Mr. Nigel Griffiths

No. The timeshare industry is relatively small in Greece and complaints resulting from timeshare purchases by UK citizens in Portugal are considerably fewer than in Spain. I am however concerned that some Member States have not yet implemented the EU Timeshare Directive and will be seeking information on their plans.

Mrs. Gillan

To ask the President of the Board of Trade if the Minister for Competition and Consumer Affairs has made a formal complaint to the Spanish Government about timeshare operations; and if she will publish the complaint and the response. [8473]

Mr. Griffiths

I wrote to the Spanish Government on 9 June about the failure to implement the EU Timeshare Directive in Spain to protect timeshare buyers. Spain has no cooling-off period. I am awaiting a reply. I have placed a copy of my letter in the Library of both Houses. I will also place a copy of the response.