A central opt-in system for paper directories is "an interesting idea" and would help "reduce the burden on resources and the environmental impact of phone books", government has said.

The statement was made in response to a petition calling for a central opt-in system for phone books organised by online directory 192.com. The petition, which closed on 29 March 2010, was signed by 12,129 people.

Although the response also praises the industry's efforts to reduce environmental damage caused by paper directories it suggests the campaigners take their arguments to Ofcom, the regulator and competition authority for the communication industry. The organisers of the Say No To Phone Books campaign have already vowed to do so.

According to 192.com 75 million paper directories are produced annually, for which 680,000 barrels of oil, 2 billion litres of water and 437 million kilowatts of energy are used. The campaigners say that 70 per cent of Britons agree that directories should only be delivered to householders who request one. The statistics have not been independently verified.

The three main directories delivered door-to-door in the UK (the Yellow Pages, Thomson Local and BT Phone Book) do allow householders to opt-out. However, because the opt-out schemes are not advertised by the directories few householders are aware that they can say 'no' to receiving the books. Householders who don't want to receive paper directories can contact the companies directly or use the Junk Buster opt-out service.

Links

• Government response (hmg.gov.uk)
• Say No To Phone Books (192.com)
• Opt out of directories (junkbuster.org.uk)