Liberal Democrat MP for Edinburgh West Mike Crockart has welcomed today’s announcement that the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) is set to issue fines totalling over £250,000 to two illegal marketers who distributed millions of spam texts.
 
The ICO has written to both companies giving them 28 days to respond and prove they were complying with the law, if they cannot do this or do not respond final penalty notices will then be issued.
 
This announcement comes just weeks after Mike Crockart launched a campaign to tackle nuisance calls supported by the Sunday Post newspaper which has already received the support of over ten thousand people.
 
Commenting on the fines Mike Crockart said:

“This announcement is hugely welcome and hopefully marks the start of a much more active enforcement phase by the ICO . The overwhelming response to my campaign has proved that the public are sick of receiving millions of unsolicited calls and texts.
 
“However, action like this would not be possible without the information provided by the public. I would urge everyone who receives a nuisance call or text to register the details on the ICO website. The more information that is available, the more fines the ICO will be able to issue.
 
“Although this is a good start, I believe that the ICO should have the powers to go further. My campaign calls for the ICO’s powers to be strengthened to take in all forms of unsolicited contact and for there to be a single point of contact for any individual wishing to protect their privacy. Until we do that these companies will keep trying to find their way round the maze of regulations.”

ICO announcement in full

No 2 Nuisance Calls campaign

Ofcom has today published an in depth guide for consumers on how to protect themselves against nuisance calls and messages and how to make a complaint.