MPs yesterday debated the issue of credit card reform.

Barry Gardiner, the Labour MP for Brent North, called on the government to insist that credit card companies come clean on their charges to customers with an Honesty Box.

The box would set out all the hidden terms and conditions on a grid so that the costs and benefits of the different cards could be easily compared.

Forum Response: National Consumer Council

Gill Bull, acting chief executive at NCC, told ePolitix.com: "NCC has been campaigning for years towards greater transparency and agrees that clearer information is vital for all consumers.

"We welcome the idea of an Honesty Box that will give people simple, clear, information that they can access easily, so they can make informed decisions.

"This is an idea that should be seriously considered by the DTI in its forthcoming review of the Consumer Credit Act."

Forum Response: Consumers' Association

A spokesman for the Consumers' Association told ePolitix.com: "What is more important is the fact that some credit cards charge such high rates of interest - anything up to 18 per cent. Consumers need to be more aware of the better deals that are available.

"Credit card companies also need to be more transparent when calculating interest rates."

Forum Response: Association for Payment Clearing Services

A spokesman for APACS told ePolitix.com: "The credit card industry has long argued that the APR is an unreliable comparator of credit card products and should not be used in isolation by customers when choosing which credit card to apply for.

"The industry has already put forward proposals to the DTI along the very lines Barry Gardiner MP describes, which are being considered as part of the current review of the Consumer Credit Act. The industry is keen to ensure that customers have the information they require to make an informed choice.

"Consequently credit card issuers would welcome adoption of an approach similar to the Schumer Box (or Mr Gardiner's Honesty Box) used in the USA but are constrained by the need to comply with the existing legislation.

"Examples which appear to be 'misrepresentations of the facts' are in fact a direct result of the out-dated methods the industry is required by law to use when promoting its products and demonstrate the limitations of the current system. A change to the law is long over-due."