24 June 2010 – pedlary under threat

Is government to wipe out pedlary?

Those involved in the survival of the cultural life of pedlary, be aware of current moves by civil servants at BIS.

In November last year we at pedlars.info were informed by BIS that a Grand Committee was about to rubber-stamp a Statutory Instrument to remove pedlars of services from Statute so as to conform with EU Services Directive which dictates to all member states that no trading barriers should exist and that all service providers should have fair and equal access to markets. Pedlars.info immediately responded to BIS with propositions that preserve the integrity of the Pedlars Act. Lord Lucas cautioned the Grand Committee in the knowledge that his lone voice would be outvoted… and it was!
Was BIS incompetent in advising the Grand Committee?… we believe so!

Pedlars concern about incompetency is found in a forum discussion titled “A pedlar holds BIS to account“.

Pedlars.info can report a dramatic increase during the last year in the number of enquiries from citizens seeking guidance on pedlary. In the absence of any actual statistics apart from those of the Durham Report the estimated 4000 UK pedlars may have increased by as much as 25%.

On 17 June we received a reply from BIS to our letter to the new Secretary of State Vince Cable concerning the Department for Culture, Media & Sport seeking our help in informing pedlars about the statutory suppression of pedlary during 2012 for the exclusive benefit of multinational and foreign Olympic coke & burger sponsors (this is another ongoing subject of concern as the Statutory Instrument has not yet been written – keep posted).
In that same BIS letter, Roger Dennison, Senior Policy Advisor, adds “We (BIS) have also just been informed that the Services Directive may now apply to all retail services, including pedlars of goods…” (under Article 4, services means any self-employed economic activity – BIS were advised of the fact in 2007 and they have only just woken up).
Was BIS incompetent?… yes!
Pedlars.info have now written a Freedom of Information request to BIS for specific clause numbers in the Services Directive which inform opinion about change to UK legislation, together with copies of all correspondence and a constitutional impact assessment of the Services Directive.

Pedlars.info engaged in consultation with BIS, November last year, culminating in our February response to their consultation URN09/1074. In that reply we contended that the civil servants in BIS chose the lazy ‘do nothing for pedlary’ option which led to the Grand Committee meddling with the Pedlars Act.  BIS (at point 114 URN09/1074) and pedlars.info are jointly aware of a positive alternative for pedlary and whereas BIS has previously reasoned too few in numbers of service providing pedlars, the numbers are an estimated 5000 – to that must now be included a several thousand figure for licensed street traders who are also now caught in an authorisation scheme. The Services Directive requires member states to remove any authorisation scheme which might act as a deterrent or barrier to service providers from other member states operating in the UK. BIS contend that the Pedlars Act amounts to an authorisation scheme which cannot easily be justified on the criteria set out in the Services Directive. We have proposed the solution to make the Pedlars Act accessible to all EU member states by removing the residency requirement and for the UK government to make a single point of contact available to all applicants. Pedlars have urged BIS to implement a name and number database for quick public validation of current Certificates, but without progress.

Whipped up idiocy by government in both Houses has for exactly a decade (under Labour) allowed private Acts to go against pedlary and that idiocy is heightened by BIS policy makers now considering rolling out such restraint of trade on a national scale under URN09/1074.

The new coalition government budget is backing the private sector business solution to stimulate growth and they don’t mean just the fat cat private sector but include the “small business entrepreneur”. Entrepreneurship begins at the lowest cost of £12.50. That’s the entry and renewal fee for those who have good ideas to market throughout the UK… and EU, namely pedlars.

Politics is, in this respect, at odds with the civil service.
The nation has asked whom does the politician serve? and it is also asked, whom does the civil servant serve?

The question is… will government cut the nose to spite the face?

Probably!