Updated: UHM calls for prices authority

The UHM this morning called for the government's consumer division to be turned into an authority that could better clamp down on price abuse.

"The division needs to be turned into an authority with greater enforcement powers and greater visibility," UHM general secretary Gejtu Vella told a press conference. A similar call has been made by the PL.

Mr Vella held the press conference outside the division's offices in Sta Venera after a meeting with the division's senior officials.

Mr Vella said the division was under-resourced and under-staffed.

It was not fair, he said, that some people tried to get rich overnight through price abuse.

The vegetable and medicines sectors were among the main problem areas, he said.

Mr Vella said the price monitoring mechanism employed before the euro changeover had proved to be effective, and had shown that price monitoring could work without a return to price orders.

The union, he said, was in favour of an open market and fair competition, but the market should really regulate itself, and an organisation such as the proposed authority should have the resources to investigate on abuses reported by the public.

Mr Vella regretted that the division had still not completed its investigation into fees charged for school transport (see today's issue of The Times) and said a balance was needed between the quality of the service that was given, and the fees charged.

MINISTRY'S REACTION

The Finance Ministry in a reaction noted that the government had already announced that it was working on the setting up of a consumer agency.

The ministry said the government was committed to strengthen the fight against price abuse, as it promised before the elections.

The new agency would be an improvement over the current government division, and legislation would give it the authority of enforcement where consumers do not get a fair deal.

The ministry also pointed out that the work of the Consumer Division was not restricted to price monitoring. It also worked to ensure that items for sale carried price tags, that advertising was not deceitful and it helped consumers when they complained about the purchase of a product or service, in Malta or abroad. The division also conducted several information campaigns, the most recent being about scams.