Quote:

I didn't notice.

See my emails of yesterday to Martha Kearney of Womans Hour and the editor of the Today program regarding their continued misleading statements that 0870 is National Rate.  On Womans Hour they made such a statment on only yesterday morning's program:-

And yes it does appear the BBC are allowed to regulate themselves but amongst their mangement I have copied in Stephen Whittle, their Director of Editorial Policy as well as the controller of Radio 4 (Mark Damazer) and the head of BBC Radio, Jenny Abramsky.

The fact that other BBC programs are complying with the new ASA guidlines makes it relatively easy to force these renegade programs to comply.

Programs like Womans Hour and Today seem to think they can get away with continuing the National Rate scam just because they have always done it.

In my opinion the BBC should also comply with COI guidance on the matter so at the very least should change from 0870 to 0845

-----Original Message-----
Sent: 30 September 2005 11:48
To: martha.kearney@bbc.co.uk
Cc: colin.dallibar@bbc.co.uk; jenni.murray@bbc.co.uk; sheila.mcclennon@bbc.co.uk; mark.damazer@bbc.co.uk; jenny.abramsky@bbc.co.uk; bruce.vander@bbc.co.uk; tim.davie@bbc.co.uk; mike.southgate@bbc.co.uk; stephen.whittle@bbc.co.uk; john.smith@bbc.co.uk
Subject: Why Women's Hour Cannot Continue to Claim Its 0870 Number is "National Rate"

Dear Martha,

I felt I must email you to say how shocked and appalled I was that as the Woman's Hour presenter who is most involved in current affairs and political issues with the BBC you could still state on today's program that one of your 0870 numbers was a "National Rate" call.

Surely as someone also involved on programs like Newsnight you cannot be unaware of the continued public controversy over this issue and Ofcom's press release on this matter only yesterday.

You and your Women's Hour Producers just cannot go on claiming that this 0870 number is a National Rate number in view of the following:-

Most important is the recent ASA guidance on the description of calling costs given for 0870 numbers which I have heard several other recent BBC broadcasts in recent days complying with and the recent BBC2 series Coast complying with:-

www.asa.org.uk/cap/news_events/news/2005/Stop+the+call+confusion.htm

This says you:-
must not describe calls to those numbers as being charged at ‘local’ or ‘national’ rate.
must state the maximum cost of calls to BT customers and indicate that call costs using non-BT phone lines may vary.  (This would amount to saying calls can cost between 3 and 8p per minute for BBC customers using BT depending on the time of day at which they call).
Also as a BBC political commentator on Newsnight are you not aware of the recent parliamentary early day motion on this matter where over 20 MPs signed a motion deploring the use of 0870 numbers by government contact centres?

http://edmi.parliament.uk/EDMi/EDMDetails.aspx?EDMID=28872%09%09%09%09%09%09%09&...

Paragraph 1.3 of The below submission by Leicestershire Trading Standards to Ofcom also made it clear that anyone stating that 0870 calls are "National Rate" may be committing an offence under Part III of the Consumer Protection Act 1987:-

www.ofcom.org.uk/consult/condocs/oftel_0845/responses/leicester_cc.pdf

I must therefore ask you to stop going on stating that 0870 numbers are National Rate when new guidelines from the ASA make it perfectly clear that the BBC just cannot continue to get away with this particular part of its 0870 scam.  Of course for the time being we can't actually stop the BBC using these 0870 numbers but we can force it to state the correct call price for them when it does so.

Regards,

Quote:

I hesitate to say (OK, write) this, but doesn't ofcom regulate broadcasters as well?

NGM, let us know how you on with those replies from the BBC.

Here is the reply I have received from the Deputy Editor of Womans Hour which is about a thousand times more helpful and useful than the one I would have received if I had telephone BBC Information on their outsourced 0870 number run by Capita staff in Belfast.  In fact had I telephoned that number I would almost certainly not have received any further response.

So slowly slowly we win the war (in this case not to stop the use of 0870 but merely to stop the blatant bare faced lie that they are National Rate calls) but why should we have to waste all this time and effort when a tough and competent Ofcom (perhaps with a new Policy Director called Mr Ever Alert and Constantly Pushy) could have stopped the whole scam at least two years ago.

-----Original Message-----
From: Maria Williams [mailto:maria.williams.01@bbc.co.uk]
Sent: 03 October 2005 17:02
Subject: FW: Why Women's Hour Cannot Continue to Claim Its 0870 Number is "National Rate"

Thank you very much for contacting Martha about Woman's Hour's use of the phrase "national rate" to describe an 0870 number.  I have checked and you are quite right - the BBC' s policy is to say nothing when referring to the 0870 number .  We will not refer to it as "national rate" in the future.  However I have also been advised that we cannot give the price, as prices depend on the caller's network provider.
Thank you for bringing this matter to our attention and please accept my apologies for our error.
Best wishes
Maria

Maria Williams
Deputy Editor
Woman's Hour
BBC Radio 4
Tel:  020 7765 4549
Mob: 07841 004 124

-----Original Message-----
From: Kerr Kate [mailto:Kate.Kerr@homeoffice.gsi.gov.uk]
Sent: 22 September 2005 18:30
Subject: Home Office Public Enquiry Number


...I can confirm that the Permanent Secretary agreed that the Home Office should adopt a geographic number for its central public enquiry number.  The number is 020 7035 4848 and is now operational.  

The contact page on the website has been changed to reflect the new number...

Katie Kerr
Direct Communications Unit, Home Office
7th Fl. Horseferry House, Dean Ryle Street, London SW1P 2AW
020 7035 4725
[/quote]

As of 1530 today, the Home Office website is still showing the 0870 number. So that's not changed at all then.

Quote:


The good is that they will no longer mislead the public into believing that 0870 is charged at the BT National Rate which is where the whole scam starts.

If people started thinking 0870, "oh, oh danger don't call" then these scamsters would have to change their way.

They should quote the pence per minute rate min/max as well as stopping saying "National Rate" but no doubt I would have to chase Ofcom, the ASA and Stephen Whittle, Mark Thompson and Michael Grade at the BBC to stand any hope of getting this enforced.

If everyone who hears 0870 called National Rate tells these people why they can't do this anymore they will have to stop.

NGM - I heard Michael Grade being interviewed on Radio 4 Talk Back (about 3 months ago) where he said that all profit made on phone calls from the public went to charity. I got the impression that he did not know of the existance of 0870 numbers nor the extensive use made of them by the BBC. I think he thought that the only time the BBC used premium lines was for things like children in need. Or maybe it was a massive blag that he hoped would not be picked up.

It might be worth pursuing him.