Consumers, Estate Agents and Redress Bill [HL]

It is not normally the practice for us to have votes in Grand Committee, but I am new so I do not want to comment. I join the noble Baroness, Lady Miller, in wishing noble Lords a happy new year. Everyone is looking much chipper and keen to get on with the Bill, so I shall proceed. I thank the noble Baroness for raising issues such as smart metering and itemised billing in energy, because this is one of the areas that the Government are looking at as part of the energy review process, and we will be looking in detail at those measures. This is the second day of Grand Committee. My officials and I have looked very carefully at the report of the first day in Hansard, and we are doing our best to meet many of the concerns that were expressed on that day. We do listen very carefully to what noble Lords have to say during proceedings. One or two specific issues were raised initially on Energywatch. We intend the sectoral expertise of Energywatch to be guaranteed as part of the new NCC. There is no intention at all to diminish the role of a body that represents consumers of energy. The new NCC will continue to carry out the sectoral functions currently undertaken by sectoral consumer bodies such as Energywatch. As I said, there is no intention of diminishing the role that Energywatch currently plays when it adopts its new form and is subsumed into the NCC. I also reassure my noble friend Lord O’Neill of Clackmannan that there is no intention of presenting this as a money-saving measure. That is not the intention; the intention is to have a more coherent advocate for consumers across a range of areas. My noble friend also mentioned telecoms. The telecoms industry currently has a consumer panel, and when the Government looked into which sectors representing consumers should be incorporated into the NCC, they saw that telecoms had an independent regulator with powers and duties to protect consumers and teeth to sort out suppliers, an independent consumer panel to advise on specific issues, and an industry-funded independent ombudsman. In that sense, it already has a very good structure, so it is not felt appropriate at this stage to incorporate it into the NCC. On the general issue of Clause 13, I am grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Miller, and the noble Lord, Lord Razzall, for tabling the Question and thus for the opportunity to debate this important clause today. I am pleased to have had the benefit of the insights of noble Lords who have already contributed to the debate. In speaking to the clause, I draw attention to the importance that I attach to preserving the very best elements of the current arrangements, especially where they provide important powers that can be used to the benefit of consumers. In markets with a sectoral regulator, that regulator has great responsibilities to ensure the proper operation of the market and to ensure that licence holders conduct themselves appropriately in line with their obligations under the licences, codes and agreements. This is in the interests of consumers. Indeed, the primary statutory objective of the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority in carrying out its functions is to protect the interests of consumers. This is what the clause refers to. To back up its statutory objectives, the authority has enforcement powers that enable it to secure compliance with the important obligations placed on licensees in the energy sector. We need to preserve the ability of the authority to bring to bear its powers in support of the consumer interest, and in aid of that enforcement role, by making provision in the Bill for the council to alert the authority of issues within its regulatory remit wherever appropriate and necessary. That is what the clause currently delivers for consumers; it focuses on resolving problems in the most effective way. Where the regulator has enforcement powers in respect of the complaints made by the consumer, it is sensible to ensure that the regulator is aware of that complaint and has the opportunity to use such powers to resolve it. That position is not different from the current one, and we are keen to maintain proper and effective means to address consumer detriment. Consequently, Clause 13 makes provision for the new council to refer a complaint made under Clause 10(1)(a), or one to which Clauses 11(3) or 12(1) apply, to the Gas and Electricity Markets Authority, where the new NCC considers that the authority’s regulatory functions may be exercisable unless the authority is already aware of the matter. Where a complaint is made under Clause 12(2) in respect of gas or electricity disconnection and is referred by the council to the authority, the council is not obliged to investigate the complaint until the authority has had a reasonable chance to exercise its enforcement functions. The clause provides for the council to notify a complainant if the council considers that a complaint referred to it relates to a matter that can be referred to the authority under existing legislative provision. This ensures that the complainant is informed of the most appropriate route for effective resolution of the problem. The clause, as it stands, is currently a good one, and will ensure that consumers are adequately protected.