30/05/2011

Available for over a year

Consumer news with Julian Worricker The government is proposing to cut £350 million pounds from the £2.2 billion annual Legal Aid budget. They say they want to focus resources on 'more deserving cases; what does this mean and who will lose out? Sumptuous TV advertising tempting tourists to come to Scotland and Wales have paid dividends - boosting both foreign and domestic visitors. 'Visit Britain' is planning an overhaul of its public image but what makes a good tourism advert and does England , in particular, fall short of showing itself in its best light? Ever had an unexpectedly high telephone bill? OFCOM would like to hear from you. They want to collect data and experiences and see if they can establish whether strangely expensive telephone bills - landline or mobile - are more usually the fault of the user or the phone company. 'Click and Collect' is the name for the increasing number of retail outlets that are offering to collect and return your parcels for you. It is a response to the sometimes frustrating business of having trek to out of town parcel collection centres or post offices with restricted hours for collections. The online payment network Pay Point is leading the way with 3,500 outlets nationwide that will accept parcels, at least for return. Buying medicines online without a prescription can be a perilous business. Drug companies have stepped up their 'Get Wise' campaign aimed at persuading the public not to buy medicines which may not be what they claim to be, could damage your health, or even kill you... and end up costing more than buying the legitimate product over the counter. Critics say the campaign needs to send a more sophisticated message than simply 'don't do it'.