Graham Wilson, Nabma Chief Executive, and Dr. Brian Iddon MP attended a meeting at the Cabinet Office to discuss the future of Dr. Iddon’s Private Members Bill on Pedlars.

Nabma members will know that Dr Iddon’s Bill has been blocked at second reading stage because of government objection. Ian McCartney MP, DTI Minister, had suggested that there might be a way to deal with the concerns raised by Nabma when a new Local Government Bill, giving local authorities greater regulation on local problems, is pursued in the Autumn.

Graham Wilson and Dr. Iddon were met by Pat McFaden MP, Cabinet Office, and he gave a sympathetic hearing to the problems of Pedlars and unlawful street trading. However given the scope of the Bill that is currently being considered it seems unlikely that it will be able to deal with the problem of Pedlars and unlawful trading.

One of the major obstacles is in relation to the powers of seizure being sought to confiscate the goods of Pedlars and unlawful traders who are operating in breach of the legislation. While the new Bill envisages a range of new enforcement provisions including fixed penalties no consideration is currently being given to the use of seizure as a means of enforcement. Additionally the proposed Local Government Bill would have to amend the current provisions in the 1982 Act and the Pedlars Act 1871 and it seems unlikely that this can be achieved.
Following the meeting Dr. Iddon indicated that he felt his current Private Members Bill was unlikely to progress further because of government opposition and the short time scale of the existing parliamentary session. However Dr Iddon indicated his determination to continue with his campaign and said he would look at the possibility of introducing a Presentation Bill in the next session of Parliament.

Graham Wilson, Nabma Chief Executive, expressed appreciation for all the work that Dr. Iddon is currently undertaking and said that he was sure that Dr. Iddon’s Bill had raised the profile of the problem of Pedlars and unlawful trading and he was confident that we would ultimately see a successful conclusion to the problem.