2020 consultation responses

The Panel welcomes the opportunity to contribute to Gigabit Take-up Advisory Group’s (GigaTAG) Call for Evidence and help stimulate demand for gigabit-capable broadband connections across the UK. Our strategic plan 2020/21 outlines that as a baseline, all consumers, citizens and microbusinesses should have the right to demand access to an affordable and reliable communications service and no consumer should be left behind, regardless of circumstances.

The Panel welcomes the opportunity to respond to Ofcom’s consultation on Open Communications, highlighting the need to ensure that any mechanism of data sharing is both secure and transparent from the view of consumers.

We welcome the opportunity to respond to Ofcom’s further consultation on making on-demand services accessible. The Panel champions inclusive communications and implementing inclusive design at the development stage of communications services and processes.

We welcome the opportunity to respond to the PSA’s discussion document to support development of its Code of Practice ahead of formal consultation. We believe that in such a complex and fragmented market, the role of regulators is key in ensuring providers help consumers to understand what they are paying, to which organisations, and how to seek redress when things go wrong.

The Panel welcomes the DCMS Committee’s inquiry into the 'Impact of Covid-19 on DCMS sectors, and the opportunity to contribute evidence on behalf of consumers, citizens and micro businesses in the communications sector.

We welcome the opportunity to provide a formal response to Ofcom’s consultation. In a fastpaced sector, with a vast number of tariff choices and complexity in services and contracts on offer, it is vital that consumers are able to access information from an independent broker on the options available to – and suitable for – them, their budget and their needs.

We welcome the opportunity to respond formally to Ofcom’s consultations on the way it should implement the requirements of the European Electronic Communications Code (EECC). We are pleased that the EECC is a vehicle that Ofcom can use to implement changes that will benefit consumers, citizens and micro businesses.

The Panel welcomes the opportunity to comment on Ofcom’s strategic priorities for the next financial year. We believe Ofcom’s priority work areas and ongoing projects are well aligned.

The Panel values its relationships across the consumer landscape, including with Citizens Advice, Which?, Citizens Advice Scotland and the Consumer Council for Northern Ireland (CCNI). We support the four principles used to guide the workplan – and in particular welcome Principle three which reinforces our intention to work more closely together.

The Panel believes strong links between statutory consumer bodies across the UK are essential, especially on issues such as communications policy which is a reserved power. We support the CCNI’s attention to its proposed work areas for this period.