SPEECH BY THE HON. GEORGE HYZLER, PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY IN THE MINISTRY FOR ECONOMIC SERVICES, ON THE OCCASION OF THE CONSUMER PROTECTION SEMINAR SPONSORED BY TAIEX AND ORGANISED BY THE CONSUMER AFFAIRS COUNCIL IN COLLABORATION WITH THE DEPARTMENT OF CO

Mr Chairman

Distinguished Guests

Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my pleasure as the Parliamentary Secretary responsible for consumer affairs, to address this first consumer protection seminar in Malta sponsored by the Technical Assistance Information Exchange Office of the European Commission.

This seminar offers us a unique opportunity to share and learn from the experiences of different countries in the sector of consumer affairs. A one-day seminar will not cover, of course, the wide spectrum of the subjects of direct interest to consumers – subjects ranging from consumer credit to unfair terms, from distance selling to consumer redress – subjects which in their own right would merit at least a full day seminar.

During this activity we shall have the benefit of hearing various distinguished speakers from European Union Member States, who will talk about different subjects focusing in particular on the experiences of their respective countries. The contributions of these speakers provide us with the chance of posing questions relating to the subjects covered.

I am sure that we will all make the most of this initiative.

Consumer policy and Consumer legislation in Malta have a relatively short history. The first laws directly related to consumer affairs were enacted in the mid-eighties. The first consumer association was set up in 1982 whereas the Consumer Affairs Department started to operate in 1992. An important milestone in consumer affairs was the publication by Government in 1991 of a White Paper on Consumer Rights whereby a fairly comprehensive review was undertaken of what had to be done both in terms of administrative regulatory structures as well as consumer legislation. Subsequently in 1994, the Consumer Affairs Act was enacted. As a result, a number of structures focusing on consumer affairs were established, namely, a Consumer Affairs Council, an executive director responsible for the day-to-day affairs including the handling of individual complaints and the administration of various consumer related laws, as well as the establishment of the Consumer Claims Tribunal to determine consumer versus trader disputes involving relatively small claims.

In recent months, substantial progress has been registered in the area of consumer affairs legislation. Last October, what is possibly the most important law to date on consumer affairs, was approved by Parliament, with, if I may add, the consensus of the Opposition. This is in itself significant because it demonstrates that even at a political level there is agreement as to the measures Government is introducing in consumer affairs. Consequently, far-reaching amendments were made to the Consumer Affairs Act and the Door-to-Door Salesmen Act (now renamed the Doorstep Contracts Act). Accordingly, we have now started implementing measures based on the relevant EU consumer policy directives dealing with:

product liability,

sale of consumer goods,

injunctions to protect the interests of consumers,

door-to-door trading, and

misleading and comparative advertising.

In this Law we have not limited ourselves merely to the existing EU consumer policy requirements. Measures have also been introduced :

to curb the so-called pyramid schemes and similar schemes which have, in the past, targeted various consumers especially those in the more vulnerable categories,

to ameliorate the effectiveness of consumer claims as an alternative means to consumer redress and

notably new rights for consumer associations.

It is significant to note that, in these amendments, we have also included a series of principles based, in part, on the United Nations Guidelines on Consumer Protection, thereby establishing the guidelines for present and future legislation on consumer affairs and giving a clear vision as to what we intend to achieve.

The amendments to the Consumer Affairs Act also empower the Minister responsible for consumer affairs acting on the advice of the Consumer Affairs Council, to implement by regulation the directives on

Consumer credit,

Distance selling, and

Price indications.

We envisage that the necessary regulations on these subjects will be enacted in the near future. Furthermore regulations were enacted last August implementing the EU Directive on package travel, package holidays and package tours.

Other EU consumer policy-related directives are being implemented under separate laws including those on:

General product safety, and

Timeshare agreements

In preparing these laws, we have been guided by two norms namely the various EU consumer policy requirements as well as the need to provide consumers in Malta with a comprehensive regulatory framework.

I must emphasize in this regard, that, the various EU directives are not being implemented simply because the EU requires that laws be approved on the basis of these directives, but because we strongly believe that the enactment of new laws based on the relevant EU consumer policy directives are beneficial to consumers in Malta.

Indeed in some instances we have adopted measures, which either go beyond the minimum requirements of the pertinent EU directives, or else are not dealt with under an EU directive.

We believe that with the introduction of new laws based on EU Directives, a step in the right direction will be achieved. Our primary intent is to have in place the best measures that can therefore ensure an equitable balance between the rights and duties of consumers and traders. We retain that the EU consumer policy offers a strong foundation on which to achieve this goal. Moreover there is broad agreement across the political spectrum on the ultimate goals which these new laws propose to achieve. This in itself already augurs well for the progression of the present initiatives in the field of consumer affairs.

Parallel to these legislative measures, the Ministry for Economic Services undertook an extensive operational review of all departments and entities falling under the Ministry. As a result of this review, the Department of Consumer Affairs and the Office of Fair Competition will now become the Consumer and Competition Division. The new Division brings together two complimentary cornerstones of the European Union: competition policy and consumer protection. The goal of this Division is many fold. It will, amongst others:

inform, advise and educate consumers on how to obtain value for money whilst ensuring that the quality of products available on the market is of an acceptable level;

provide post market surveillance of goods, products and services on the market

ensure consistency with standards and compliance with good practice as spelt out in relevant legislation;

investigate consumer complaints and advise on how to seek appropriate redress;

ensure free competition,

take appropriate surveillance measures regarding anti-dumping of goods and products on the market;

investigate complaints of breaches of fair competition.

In a nutshell, Government is determined to instill a culture in which consumers become fully aware of their rights and responsibilities and have the legal means to obtain what is theirs by right. At the same time we want to ensure that there is fair competition across the board and a strong compliance unit to monitor market surveillance.

It is a fact that the changes in our consumer legislation and to our consumer culture are spurred by the political will to join the European Union. The implementation of the EU consumer policy directives has the added advantage that we can learn and benefit from the wealth of experiences from other countries in this field. More significantly, the consumer in Malta will now have the same rights and benefits of his European counterpart and at the same time the responsibility to take the initiative in those matters that affect him directly. This is, in my view the next logical step – one which represents a significant departure from an ingrained culture that encouraged reliance on government for control and enforcement at all levels.

Mr Chairman

Ladies and Gentlemen,

When over a year ago I was given the responsibility of this sector I immediately realized that coordination was largely missing between the different structures operating within the sector. It was evident that consumer education lacked coherence, direction, financing and effective implementation. Furthermore the Council's responsibility was somehow restrained and the Department needed a more dynamic and purposeful function in order to instill a consumer culture. Today I am pleased to witness the many changes that have taken place to educate consumers on their rights and responsibilities, to protect their interests and to ensure that quality runs across all products and services.

Seminars such as this contribute to the necessary information and awareness.

I hope that as a follow up to this meeting concrete initiatives will be taken to ensure that every consumer will have the opportunity, through information technology and the media, to understand that consumer rights and responsibilities are now, more than ever before, protected by law. However such information will only be of relevance if consumers, through personal or collective initiative make use of the means of redress that the law gives to bring about an improved quality of goods and services .

In conclusion, allow me to thank the European Commission through its TAIEX programme for making this event possible and for bringing over to Malta so many distinguished experts in this field of concern. I also wish to thank all those who contributed towards the organization of this seminar and in particular the Chairman and members of the Consumer Affairs Council and the Department for Consumer Affairs.

I augur that this event will be the first in a series of other activities which will contribute towards a higher level of consumer education and protection of our citizens.

I look forward to your deliberations and wish our international speakers a pleasant and fruitful stay in Malta.

Thank you.