Caller ID to be given for free vows Labour

Labour has vowed to launch a tough crackdown on nuisance calls if it wins next year’s General Election.

The Sunday Post has led the fight against the plague which has prompted Government ministers to put together a battle plan to tackle it.

But now, Helen Goodman, Labour’s Shadow Minister for Culture, Media and Sport, has pledged her party would go further and make nuisance calls a top priority in Government. She claims the Coalition Government is not acting quickly enough to bring an end to the blight and its plans do not go far enough.

She said: “Labour is calling on the Government to act now. We want them to do two things to protect the consumer. Firstly, there should be a ‘one stop shop’, a single phone line and website for citizens to report nuisance calls.

“Secondly, caller identification should be made free for the consumer. People should be able to know who is calling them before they pick up the phone.”

Last month The Sunday Post claimed victory in our long-running campaign against nuisance calls when the Government unveiled its action plan which includes fining rogue companies up to 20% of their turnover.

David Hickson of the Fair Telecoms Campaign, said: “We propose that a single agency be established to handle reports of nuisance calls and truly represent the citizen and consumer interest, in pressing the appropriate regulator to take the most effective action possible. The Government ‘action plan’ is for more of the same essentially ineffective action, whereas the ‘one stop shop’ idea is the basis of what we propose. It is a disgrace that so many companies have been able to profit by exploiting the concerns that people have, because the problem has not been properly dealt with in the public interest.

“Citizens have a right to be protected from widespread nuisance without having to spend their own money on devices and services that commonly fail to deliver what they promise.

“The present regime has been in place for over 10 years. Despite regular good-sounding initiatives, from both governments, the problem has actually probably got worse.”

The Department for Culture, Media and Sport said: “We know how much people hate nuisance calls and that’s exactly why the Government has taken action.

“We have increased the fines for companies who breach the law up to £2 million and we are currently exploring ways to make it much easier to fine and prosecute companies.”