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Members of the public are invited to give their views on the legislative proposals to strengthen protection for consumers against unfair trade practices before the consultation exercise ends on October 31, a spokesman for the Commerce and Economic Development Bureau (CEDB) said today (October 7).
The Government launched in July a public consultation on the legislative proposals with the objective of enhancing the protection of consumers¡¦ legitimate interests while preserving a level playing field for traders to do business.
Major proposals set out in the consultation document include expanding the scope of the Trade Descriptions Ordinance (TDO) to cover trade descriptions of services in consumer transactions; creating new criminal offences under the TDO to prohibit specified unfair trade practices; providing expressly under the TDO that aggrieved consumers can institute private civil action on infringement of the proposed fair trade provisions; imposing cooling-off periods on certain types of transactions; and giving the Customs and Excise Department new enforcement powers.
"We appeal to members of the public to send their views to us before the October 31 deadline. To encourage extensive participation, we have engaged the public and stakeholders through different channels including briefing sessions and meetings with District Councils and different trade sectors, as well as through a dedicated Facebook page.
"The Bureau will consider the views collected carefully before proceeding with the law drafting work. The target is to introduce an amendment bill into the Legislative Council in the 2010/2011 legislative session," the spokesman said.
Members of the public can obtain a copy of the consultation document at the public enquiry service centres of district offices of the Home Affairs Department or download it from the CEDB's Commerce, Industry and Tourism Branch (www.cedb.gov.hk/citb).
They can send their views to the CEDB by post (Level 29, One Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Hong Kong), fax (2869 4420), or e-mail (cpr@cedb.gov.hk), or post their comments on the dedicated Facebook page, www.facebook.com/ConsumerProtectionReview.
Ends/Thursday, October 7, 2010
Issued at HKT 11:03
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