To coincide with the second reading of the Enterprise Bill in the House of Commons today, the Consumers' Association has called on the DTI to insert a new provision in the bill to prohibit deceptive conduct.

If this became law, consumers would be able to sue companies for wrongful conduct.

Forum Response: Consumers' Association

Sheila McKechnie, director of the Consumers' Association, told ePolitix.com: "Until deceptive conduct is prohibited by law, wrongful behaviour towards consumers will continue to thrive.

"While there is a clear need to provide consumers with compensation when large corporations price-fix, similar rights should exist when consumers are exposed to bad practice and second rate goods and services.

"We are urging the government to strengthen consumer power in this area. Until this happens there will be little incentive for rogues to improve dodgy business practices."

Forum Response: British Retail Consortium

Bill Moyes, director general of the British Retail Consortium, told ePolitix.com: "The BRC welcomes the opportunity provided by the second reading debate on the Enterprise Bill to raise a number of important issues affecting the retail industry.

"We support the government's commitment to competition as the best means of ensuring low priced, high quality goods and services for the consumer. We believe that the retail sector has demonstrated the value of this approach and every investigation of the sector has shown it to be an efficient, competitively based sector.

"It is important that the government should recognise that a fair balance of rights and duties is needed in legislation designed to protect the consumer. A considerable amount of legislation has been introduced over the last few years - both from Brussels and the UK - and this brings with it considerable costs for retail. We would hope that with the introduction of this Bill there could now be a period of consolidation in which new rules are kept to the minimum and retailers can get on with the job they know best - serving their customers the best they can.

"In particular the Bill gives us an opportunity to put behind us the disappointing experience of the Stop Now Orders which were introduced hastily without proper consultation - and which the OFT used in ways to clarify the law that had not been foreseen and without the necessary guidance having been produced. We look forward to an act that promotes healthy competition and ensures consumer protection."

Forum Response: Institute of Directors

Ruth Lea, head of the policy unit at the IoD, told ePolitix.com: "We do not believe the enterprise bill will make any major differences to the way businesses are run in the UK.

"The proposed changes to the bankruptcy laws and the tightening up of the competition regime are steps in the right direction but they are very unlikely radically to change the environment for enterprise to flourish. What is needed for enterprise to flourish is a serious attempt to cut the red tape strangling business."