HL Deb 11 October 1999 vol 605 c54WA
Lord Montague of Oxford

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What action they can take to make the net cost of telephone calls transparent to consumers. [HL4083]

Lord Sainsbury of Turville

The regulation of telecoms operators in the UK is a matter for Oftel. All those providing publicly available telephone services, both fixed and mobile, must publish information for residential consumers on their standard terms and conditions.

Consumers, however, may need more information in order to be able to compare the impact on their bill of the tariffs of different operators. Oftel is working with the main fixed link operators and consumer groups on developing a price comparison model to help residential customers more easily compare prices. The first comparison model will be introduced later this year and it will give customers access to more transparent information with which to make a more informed choice of telecoms provider.