Council trading standard officers will be able to continue to carry out unannounced inspections following a lobbying victory by the Local Government Association (LGA).
The Government planned to scrap the power as part of the Draft Consumer Rights Bill. But the plan has been dropped following by the LGA and Trading Standards Institute.
LGA regulation spokesman, Nick Worth, said: ‘These proposals would have severely restricted the ability of trading standards officers to undertake unannounced inspections even where they had a good reason for undertaking one.
‘Placing unnecessary restrictions on the ability of councils to act on tip-offs or intelligence would have damaged their ability to protect their residents from unscrupulous traders.
‘We now want to work with government to ensure there are also no restrictions on trading standards’ ability to investigate risks relating either to specific businesses or types of activities.’
