Confident consumers? Challenging the EU perspectives

Article abstract:

Food safety and e-commerce - these are the big issues that the European Commission has been forced to put right at the top of the agenda. And, pressure to tackle these issues effectively is being fuelled by the desire to build consumer confidence that their interests are being protected. Never before has consumer trust, or the lack of it, been such a driving force behind Euro politics. The approach to mega mergers, like AOL/Time Warner, the attitude to price fixing in the car market and the ongoing review of the safety of chemicals in consumer goods are all signs that the Commission is beginning to heed public interest. Such undivided attention to the creation of the single European market in the Nineties gave advantages to business that now must be balanced. It is not surprising that the Commission is keen to get closer to its citizens.