Giles Watling, MP for Clacton, has welcomed the Government’s consultation on additional actions to address the problem of nuisance calls and messages.
For many local residents, unwanted marketing calls are a source of annoyance and inconvenience, and for the most vulnerable in society they can cause extreme anxiety and distress. Like Giles, Ministers do not believe that this is acceptable, and as such the Government has introduced a series of measures to make it more difficult for direct marketing companies to make nuisance calls.
Marketers are now forced to display their caller ID, and the Government has increased fines for wrongdoers, whilst also transferring responsibility for the Telephone Preference Service from Ofcom to the Information Commissioner’s Office, to ensure that a single regulator can take enforcement action against those companies found to be breaching the rules. As a result, nuisance call complaints have fallen for the second year in a row.
However, Ministers now believe that we must continue to move forward if we are to truly tackle this problem, and it is for that reason that the Government has introduced additional provisions in the Financial Guidance and Claims Act 2018, which will further restrict marketing calls relating to claims management services, as well as those from pensions providers.
The Government has now launched a public consultation to invite views on further action in this area, and Ministers are keen to hear from organisations or individuals in the Clacton constituency who might have an interest in this issue.
The consultation closes on 21st August 2018, and details on how to respond can be viewed here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/nuisance-calls-and-messages-action-against-directors
Giles said:
“These nuisance calls are a significant issue for many residents in the Clacton constituency, and I would encourage anyone with an interest to contribute to this consultation. We must continue to tackle this issue, and I will do all that I can to support Ministers in their efforts to do so.”