Smith calls for active policing and enforcement of Consumer Protection Act
Deputy Speaker and Territorial At-Large Representative Neville Smith has said he believes the Consumer Protection Act will need to be actively policed and enforced when it comes into effect in the British Virgin Islands.
Smith gave that indication during an unusual second round of debates for the Bill in the House of Assembly on Monday. The first debates happened last July but had to be redone because the House got prorogued before the Bill passed.
During Monday’s sitting, Smith said: “This bill here is something that we have to take seriously. We cannot just bring this bill here and then expect it to work by itself. We have to talk about actually enforcing what we have here in this document.
“If we do not duly police this document and do what we have to do by this document it will not work … So I am speaking to the people who have been working with this bill, the staff, the team, that this is not a bill to sit down on, it’s not a bill to just have and look at,” Smith added.
He continued: “A good example again: when you go into a supermarket, stuff that are expired and have expired dates, what happened to those stuff? And they have a restaurant inside there. I’m not saying it’s happening but how do you know they’re not using these same products to cook the food and sell to save themselves money .. So these are the things we need to start looking and not just think this document is going to work for itself.”
Enforcement to stop potential cheaters of the law
The Deputy Speaker also explained that enforcement and policing of the bill is critical to stay ahead of those persons or businesses who will try to find a way to circumvent the legislation.
“We have to promote this, you have to go out there and investigate, you have to be out there every single day to see what is going on,” he stated.
“Just like how we created this bill to catch whoever is out there doing the wrong, they are going to check this bill and try to do something to even outdo this bill that they can still do what they want to do,” Smith further explained.
The Consumer Protection Act is expected to explicitly establish the rights of both the consumers and businesses to create a ‘free-priced market economy’.
It will help to prevent the advent of price gouging during times of crisis in the territory and also present a guide for businesses to improve the quality of services and products provided.
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I agree wholeheartedly.
However, I would like to point out that a lot of items on the shelves have a heading Best By.
I suggest that these items can further remainder at a further discounted price for a short period after this date, and most certainly can be totally be recycled in the stores own kitchen.
Some of the items can also safely donated to charity for further distributions is done on many parts of the world.
These procedures would help the costs of goods on the shelves, help people on budgets and safe our Planet. by reducing waste.
Big fat freakin joke. Consumers will continue to be roobbed, gouged and stolen from. And they will not see a decrease in the cost of living, food. c;othes and shelter or an increase in their purchasing power or an official monitoring any thing but how much they and share holder are raking in.. Menwhile, the gollygreen food giant will continue to raise its prices weekly on every item, cut its employee hours to five a day, have them count the millions at the end of the day and they send it out of the country. The employees, they go home to at the cheapest of diet, feed their kids the same, go back to work the next to suffer the same economic humiliations, day in, week in, momth in and year i year out.
Not single politician will ever be bold enough to even speak for the economically oppressed, much less draft legislation to intentionally protect and uplift them.
The bill is a farce and a precampaining stunt. It is poorly constructed, has not a bite in it and does nothing, absolutely for the mass majority of economically suffering people. But gauranteed, look for it in their re-election political ads.
Great news now the working class can afford renting a tent ,table and chair.
Honestly, the only way change will come is PEOPLE for real, you have to stand up march and protest. There is nothing they can do. Remember, you the people is the ones that holds the power. Come November, we the people is going to vote Donald Trump out of office. Joe Biden will be the next President of the United States of America. What makes it even better, he is looking for a black female to be his running mate. Everyone is hoping he pick the Mayor of Washington DC.
Biden will NEVER be President.
Trump will win with a huge margin
long as the ignant, blind and sheep minded still exist, he could very well be re-elected. Would be sad day for the nation and the world of progressives though.
Ok Mr. GQ AKA eye candy, we got ya.
We need to look at the ridiculous rent prices as well. Since Irma we know insurance has gone up but why is the tenant bearing the cost of it. We have to look into it. Building a house is not cheap but we need to find a common ground with those rates. Why some people have a 2 bedroom for 1200 and some almost 3000 with the same amenities something is wrong somewhere.
We need someone to visit these apartment and put protocol in place that every apartment should have for example fire extinguisher. Windows that are working, that opens and shut. Some apartments still has ply boards as windows and the rent is still the same, maybe they used the insurance money on themselves and not repair the apartment that they are charging so much money for. Goverment after you investigate these apartment base on location, size of the apartment and parking they can say it’s worth $800 0r $1200. I went to look at a 2 bedroom apartment for 1500. Nothing included and the landlord said only one parking for a family of 4. Myself and my husband has separate vehicles.
when i see it happen then i will believe it don’t make noise about consumer protection and you not going to do anything put ur money where ur mouth is