FEATURE
Noyona Chundur, Chief Executive at Consumer Council.
J
oining with everyone working remotely is challenging but it’s also been exhilarating, eye-opening and rewarding in equal measure,” Noyona says of her initial settling in period. Her new role at the helm of the Consumer Council isn’t her first encounter with the organisation, however the former Head of Campaigns and Digital Solutions at Invest NI has been involved with the Council since 2016 when she joined the Board, before becoming Audit and Risk Assurance Committee Chair in 2018. “The familiarisation helped. It gave me a
real insight into our agenda, work, people and stakeholders,” she continues. While these are unusual times for the Consumer Council, with the team of 50 all working remotely, demand for services has increased in sync with the COVID-19 pandemic and in the wake of Brexit, their combined impact touching everyone’s lives. Noyona says in the last 12 months they have helped 9,000 consumers, 3,000 with free dispute resolution. “For the others, we provided independent advice and signposting on a range of issues, including their rights and protections,” she adds.
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The Consumer Council is the representative body of NI, responsible for ensuring that legislation and regulation for consumer protection works effectively here. In addition to advisory services, it engages with government, regulators and stakeholders to influence public policy, deliver fair and affordable market access, investigate consumer complaints, and is a designated super-complaints body. Statutory functions cover energy, post, transport, water and sewerage, and food accessibility, with non-statutory duties to educate and empower consumers against
