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Dixons boss blasts ‘absurd’ EU and UK laws

Costing the consumer

Dixons' boss Sir Stanley Kalms has vented his anger at the government and EU legislation in his company's annual report.

He is not happy about European waste recycling rules, UK Sunday trading laws, the UK Consumer Credit Act, and the Town and Country Planning Act.

Sir Stan feels his retail group is hamstrung by "unworkable" rules.

And when this bloke gets cross, he certainly knows how to let people know. He is well known for putting the wind up Dixons' suppliers at company dinners and strongly suggesting how they go about their business and who else they should supply.

Kalms stated in the report: "We continue to grow the group against a background of the most severe and costly regulation the market economy has experienced both from Brussels and our own government."

Using a company's annual report to make political points is an unusual step, but Sir Stan felt it was all relevant information for shareholders. And besides he is a well known eurosceptic, and he funds the Tory party.

But, "Too often absurd demands are being imposed on industry, frequently with insufficient thought or consideration of either the additional cost or the practical implications. Some proposals are simply unworkable and merely add costs that must inevitably be borne by the consumer," he said in his statement.

The EU waste recycling rules, which makes retailers responsible for disposing of old equipment when they sell new goods, has really wound up Sir Stan. He has fears of customers dumping their old crap in any Dixons, PC World, Currys, or Link store.

Dixons wants the Sunday trading laws changed because it finds it a bureaucratic pain if it wants to change the hours its stores are open. The Town planning act restricts the way it can advertise outside and inside its buildings. ®

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