§ Mr. RooneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will announce the result of the consultation on fee charging debt advice. [42624]
§ Miss Melanie Johnson[holding answer 12 March 2002]The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) consulted on draft guidelines for debt management companies last year. The OFT announced the outcome of its consultation and published the final guidance on 4 December 2001. Breaches of the guidance by companies could lead to the loss of their consumer credit licence.
Copies of the Guidelines are available from the OFT or from their website at: www.oft.gov.uk.
§ Mr. RooneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry when she will announce the outcome of the consultation on excessive interest charged on personal debt. [42622]
§ Miss Melanie Johnson[holding answer 12 March 2002]I published the results of our consultation on "Tackling loan sharks—and more!" on 15 February 2002. The consultation showed overwhelming support for proposals to clamp down on loan sharks and the other priorities identified.
Copies of both the Consultation Paper and the Summary of Responses are available from the Libraries of the House or from the DTI website at: www2.dti.gov.uk/CACP/ca/policy/consumercredit/review.htm.
Further details on specific proposals will be published over the course of next year.