CONSUMER POLICY: UNICE CALLS FOR UNIFORM EU RULES ON SALES PROMOTION.

In a press release issued on February 14, the Union of Industrial and Employers Confederations of Europe expressed unease about the idea of delaying or even stopping work on the proposed Regulation for any reason, as it is a "well-targeted proposal on sales promotions and its adoption should not be delayed so that it can actually contribute to its ultimate goal, which is the full functioning of the Internal Market". According to UNICE, divergent national rules governing sales promotional activities lead to a serious distortion of competition between companies, in particular for small and medium-sized enterprises trading or wishing to trade in different Member States. The lack of uniform rules also increases the costs for businesses advertising and promoting their products and services across national borders.This position has been strongly criticised by consumer rights organisations. BEUC, which represents consumers' interests in the EU, is strongly resisting the draft Regulation. Its initial reaction (see European Report 2624, Section IV) was that the proposal would harmonise cross-border sale promotion rules throughout the EU and prohibit the Member States from introducing stricter rules so as to cater for new forms of sales promotions. BEUC says that given the cultural and traditional diversities, the Member States have different attitudes and ways of dealing with sales promotions. Adopting such a Regulation would sound the death knell for such special features by favouring a "ready made" approach. BEUC wants the proposal to be withdrawn and replaced with a genuine consultation process on the Green...