EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has reviewed how consumer information, education and advice will be provided in the future.

The objective of its information, education and advice programmes is to:

  • empower consumers, targeting those most in need, so they can exercise choice and be effective in asserting their rights and responsibilities in the marketplace.

The review of Operations was necessary because we were not meeting our objectives. This was due to:

  • the increasing demand on the public telephone advice service (the Consumer Advice Service) following the introduction of the Consumer Guarantees Act 1993; and
  • the realisation that this service was not meeting the informational needs of targeted consumers (i.e. low income, Maori and Pacific Island consumers).
The goal of the review was to:
  • identify the best possible way to achieve our objectives within current resources; and
  • reallocate current resources so that the needs of our targeted consumers are being met.

A number of options were considered and assessed against the goal of the review and the following selection criteria:

  • achievable within existing budget;
  • best fulfills our strategic objectives;
  • provides the greatest targeting results;
  • maintains a regional presence for the best contacts;
  • develops constructive relationships; and
  • avoids the duplication of services with other organisations.

Research and consultation was undertaken with a variety of agencies including:

  • key Maori groups;
  • key Pacific Island groups;
  • key community advisory agencies;
  • other Government agencies;
  • other consumer agencies; and
  • business and trader/industry organisations.

This report follows an extensive review process that was the subject of a final consultation process based on an interim report released on 9 June 1997. Interested readers should refer to the ‘Interim Report on the Provision of Consumer Information, Education and Advice’ for further details of our current work and the discounted options.

Outcome

We consider that the option which best meets the goal of the review and the selection criteria is the "Consumer Information Service." It has the following features:

  • More strategic approach, including appointing specific staff to coordinate projects for, or manage, the Ministry’s relationship with a particular client group.
  • Focus on enhanced relationship management regionally and nationally with key community advisory agencies (such as Citizens’ Advice Bureaux (CABx), New Zealand Federation of Family Budgeting Services (NZFFBS) and member Budget Advisory Services (BAS), Community Law Centres (CLCs), People’s Resource Centres) and Government agencies (such as Te Puni Kokiri (TPK), New Zealand Income Support Service (NZISS), Ministry of Pacific Island Affairs, Commerce Commission (CC)).
  • Development of strong relationships with key Maori agencies and Pacific Island women’s agencies (see 2.4.7).
  • Enhanced training programmes and support for CABx, NZFFBS members and CLC workers and other community agencies providing consumer advice and information.
  • Provision of a hotline for CABx, BAS and CLCs and other community agencies providing consumer advice and information.
  • More consumer advocacy work for those who meet the criteria and designed to focus resources on issues involving significant detriment.
  • Development of strategies for ongoing media work aimed at targeted consumers.
  • Specific information and education programmes for target consumers.
  • Further Iwi education project work..
  • More proactive trader compliance work to change behaviour to benefit all consumers.
  • Continued trader information and education work by participating in Town Visits with the CC and as part of Consumer Awareness Week projects.
  • Improved service and resources provided to schools/TOPs.
  • Further development of written resources, and information provision mechanisms such as the internet.
  • All information from hotline calls and advocacy work recorded on an improved database - information used to record trends in the marketplace.
  • No general, public telephone advice service is provided by the Ministry in this option.

Contents | Minister | Introduction | Options | Implementing | Appendix