§ Alan SimpsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry how many(a) actual and (b) withdrawn prosecutions there have been of businesses failing the furniture regulations since 1993. [185853]
§ Mr. SutcliffeThe Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 are enforced by local trading standards departments. This Department collates statistics on prosecutions under the regulations every five years and publishes them in a statutory report on consumer safety. For the period 1 April 1993 to 31 March 1998 the report records 404 prosecutions of which 398 resulted in convictions. Between 1 April 1998 and 31 March 2003, there were 101 prosecutions resulting in 98 convictions. These statistics are obtained from enforcement authorities under Section 70 of the Weights and Measures Act 1985. Data for the period from 1 April 2003 is not yet available.