Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment his Department has made of the (a) adequacy of the (i) structure, (ii) powers and (iii) resources of Trading Standards and (b) ability of that organisation to effectively protect consumers from scams, rogue traders and other potential harms.

Local authorities are responsible for determining their spending priorities, including with respect for trading standards, and are accountable to their local electorate. Funding is not ringfenced, so local authorities make decisions according to their individual needs.

In July 2021, the Department published the Reforming Competition and Consumer Policy consultation. We sought evidence on how national and local enforcement bodies can work better together to ensure consumers are best protected against unscrupulous rogue traders. The Department will respond to the consultation in due course.