New shadow Telecommunications and E-Commerce Minister Trevor Moniz said he will be running the rule over cell phone prices after voicing fears the public are being gouged.

He said more players in the market had not led to a price fall. Mr. Moniz, who is also shadow Attorney General, said: "I think we have to look at costs, particularly cell phones.

"I wonder how much the average person pays in terms of cell phone fees and whether it is time cell phone rates started coming down. I haven't looked into it in detail but it's my concern about how the public can be better served on these issues.

"We have more players, there are more people offering cell phones now but the prices, I don't think, have come down substantially in a while.

"It may be time for some greater price competition in that area."

He said there were still not enough players to ensure pure free competition.

"There are barriers to entry in the market and relatively few players.

"There is a degree of monopoly in the market so I think Government has the responsibility to assist making sure the rates are truly competitive in the best interests of the public."

He called on Government to standardise the way rates were measured so people could easily compare prices.

"The customer can't figure out which rate is the better deal. That's bad news, Government should police that to say you can present your rates in a certain fashion. It strikes me that the players in the cell phone market must be doing extraordinarily well."

AT&T Wireless vice president said price structures were determined by what product was offered and so couldn't be put in a standardised form.

He said his company offered a cell phone which could be used in every continent which could not be compared with a phone which could be used in every room in someone's house.

"That's a cordless phone."

He said the public were keen on getting value for money rather than the cheapest product.