BOLTON is due to run out of telephone numbers in the year 2012, MPs have revealed. But there are currently no proposals as to how to tackle the problem.

The House of Commons Trade & Industry Committee said that the 01204 code would be exhausted in 13 years.

Bolton is one of seven codes that will have no numbers left by 2012, according to a survey commissioned by the Office of Telecommunications (OFTEL), which is responsible for regulating the telephone market.

The survey says that five areas will run out of numbers by 2000 - Cardiff, Belfast, London, Portsmouth and Southampton - and that OFTEL does have proposals to tackle this problem.

But of the 14 areas where the numbers will be exhausted in 2005 - which include Preston and Wigan - current plans only deal with Coventry.

And there are no proposals for the others, including Bolton.

All OFTEL could tell the all-party group of MPs was that "further proposals concerning the other areas are due soon." However, the committee is deeply critical of OFTEL over its "inefficient allocation of numbers".

The MPs say: "We are concerned that OFTEL has not pursued improvements by operators of the efficiency with which they allocate telephone numbers to end users as vigorously as they have inconvenient and costly changes to customers' numbers.

"OFTEL must not be unduly swayed from putting customers' interests first by operators' claims that improving the efficiency of number use poses them with significant technological problems."

The committee is also concerned that the changes weaken the link between local dialling and local, cheaper call charges.

The committee comments that it is "disappointed" changes in numbers are often put through without taking proper account of consumers' opposition.

And it also has criticism of telephone operators, including BT and Mercury, who are accused of being "grossly negligent" in looking after the scarce national resource of numbers.

The committee calls for a major review of the National Numbering Scheme to put customer interests first.

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