Press Releases
Partnership anti-counterfeiting work earns national awards (PR 988)
Ealing Council and Ealing Police have received national recognition for excellent partnership work in tackling counterfeit goods including DVDs, CDs, clothing and sports shoes.
The Council's Trading Standards team was highly commended by the Anti-Counterfeiting Group (ACG) for significant seizures of counterfeit items in 2006, including the UK's largest haul of pirate Bollywood DVDs in November.
Meanwhile the Southall Broadway Safer Neighbourhood police team was awarded a special commendation for its support and independent investigations leading to successful prosecutions.
Alison Newbold, the ACG’s Group Manager, presented the awards to Councillor Jason Stacey, Ealing Council Leader, and Inspector Rob Wilson, Cluster Inspector for the Southall-based Safer Neighbourhood teams, at Southall Community Alliance in Southall this morning.
For the past 25 years, ACG has campaigned against the trade in fake goods, on behalf of major manufacturers. Its annual awards recognise excellence across local authority trading standard departments, the police, HM Revenue & Customs, and overseas enforcement agencies.
Cllr Stacey said: "These awards recognise partnership working at its best. We are determined to break down local counterfeiting networks and our combined efforts are making a much greater impact.
"Counterfeiting is linked with organised crime and our continued action sends a clear message that we will not let it go unpunished.
"In addition to reducing crime, we want to ensure products are safe and that consumers are not misled."
Making Ealing's communities safer is one of the Council's three priorities. The Council's other two priorities are cleaner streets and providing value for money services.
The biggest counterfeit raids in Ealing borough last year netted pirate DVDs and CDs and fake branded clothing and trainers. Trading Standards also made a number of smaller raids, seizing counterfeit toothbrushes, charcoal, sunglasses, watches and bags.
Doug Love, Trading Standards Team Leader, said: "The Southall Broadway Safer Neighbourhood team shares our determination to tackle this criminal activity from the market stalls and small retailers up to the major producers and distributors.
"In addition to independent investigation, the police have worked with us on countless occasions, assisting with bagging evidence, arresting and interviewing suspects and searching premises."
Mr Love said although the Trading Standards team's anti-counterfeiting work had achieved significant success, it was just a small proportion of the overall work done by officers to protect consumers.
He added: "Across the borough, we are working with residents and businesses to provide advice, protect consumer rights and ensure product quality and safety."
Community and Partnership Superintendent Ian Jenkins, Ealing
Borough Police, said:
"This national recognition highlights how much of an impact
Safer Neighbourhood Policing can have in tackling crime. The
special commendation is a fitting tribute to all the hard work and
dedication the Southall Broadway Safer Neighbourhood team and
Ealing Council Trading Standards have put into targeting
counterfeit activity across Ealing borough.
"We will continue to work in partnership with the local authority to specially target and ultimately stop local crime networks that are involved in counterfeit activity in Ealing borough."
ENDS