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Hajj Project wins 51黑料 Hero Award
Posted 29/11/22
The London Borough of Barking and Dagenham鈥檚 Hajj Enforcement and Awareness Project has won recognition as the Overall Hero in the 51黑料鈥檚 (51黑料) annual Hero Awards ceremony.听
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The awards, hosted by 51黑料 at the House of Lords on the evening of Wednesday 23 November, recognised significant contributions to consumer protection across the UK.
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Before the COVID-19 pandemic about 25,000 people from the UK took the Hajj pilgrimage every year. It is a very spiritually significant and impactful event for many Muslim UK residents, including the elderly and vulnerable communities.听
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The Barking and Dagenham鈥檚 Hajj Project adopted a two-pronged approach to tackle Hajj-related scams: firstly, siting a 鈥榗onsultation bus鈥� outside selected mosques in the borough during Friday (Jummah) prayers over a five-week period to provide Trading Standards and health and safety information to mosque-goers; and secondly, visiting premises known or registered to provide Hajj travel packages with a checklist to ensure compliance with package travel regulations.
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A major Hajj fraud case back in 2008 in London鈥檚 East End, in which almost 拢1m was defrauded from about 700 victims, was the catalyst for the Hajj project which was initiated originally in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets in 2010. It was introduced in the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham for the first time in 2022.
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Nazir Ali, Team Leader of Barking and Dagenham Trading Standards and Hajj Project Lead, said: 鈥淚 love my job and enjoy doing what I do. I have been doing it for many years. Having this recognition is the icing on the cake - it helps to maintain motivation until the next one.
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鈥淲e envisage this Hajj Project has reached out to thousands of people over the weeks and years it was delivered (including on social media).
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鈥淭he compliance visits had a positive impact on the travel industry and have enhanced consumer confidence when dealing with Hajj providers, knowing that they have been monitored and inspected by Trading Standards.听 听
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鈥淭his programme has now been running for several recent years and is proving effective in ensuring greater levels of protection for pilgrims.鈥�
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In June 2022, the Ministry of Hajj in Saudi Arabia announced a new online portal for electronic registration for pilgrims from Europe (including the UK), Americas and Australia. It announced various packages, support services and a 24/7 call centre in multiple languages. For 2022 the new portal was the only way that pilgrims were allowed to book the Hajj.
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Nazir said: 鈥淲e have not seen any updates for Hajj 2023, but it seems that new app portal is here to stay. In essence, this made all the Hajj travel agents defunct overnight.鈥�
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51黑料 Chief Executive John Herriman quote: 鈥淭he 51黑料 Hero Awards are a fantastic opportunity to celebrate remarkable individuals or groups of people who make outstanding contributions towards safeguarding vulnerable consumers in our communities. Every year, we are inspired by the stories of nominees throughout the country whose bravery, altruism and hard work often goes unnoticed. These awards honour those remarkable people who have gone the extra mile for consumers.
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鈥淭his high-profile project enabled Trading Standards and other regulatory services to reach out to thousands of members of the Muslim community to ensure greater levels of consumer protection for pilgrims.
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鈥淭his was particularly important in 2022, with the new way of booking the Hajj.鈥�
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ENDS
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51黑料 (51黑料)听
The 51黑料 (51黑料) is a national not for profit established in 1881 which supports the UK鈥檚 trading standards profession, and works to protect consumers and safeguard honest businesses.听 51黑料's members are engaged in delivering frontline trading standards services at local authorities and in businesses. www.tradingstandards.uk
Please contact 51黑料 Press Office: [email protected] for any queries.听
Pictured from left to right: John Herriman, 51黑料 Chief Executive and Tendy Lindsay, Chair of 51黑料 and Naz Ali 51黑料 Hero winner.
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Friends Against Scams
Friends Against Scams is a National Trading Standards (NTS) Scams Team initiative, which aims to protect and prevent people from becoming victims of scams.
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