BEUC NEWS - 01.06.2016

Last week the EU chemicals agency, ECHA, announced that the use of chemicals in Europe is getting safer. This comes out of ECHA’s second five-year progress report on the two main EU chemicals laws¹.

However, the agency highlights a number of areas where improvements should be made, namely: 

• The quality of registration dossiers

ECHA recommends that the European Commission clarify the manufacturers’ legal obligations to update and improve the data they submit. Without quality information, the agency and Member States cannot prioritise accurately which chemicals of concern deserve the most regulatory attention.

• Better information to consumers

ECHA calls for EU citizens to receive more reliable information on the presence of dangerous chemicals in the products they buy. This includes, for example, consumers’ right to be informed about the presence of hormone disrupting plastic softeners (phthalates) in children’s’ toys or clothing. ECHA acknowledges the shortcomings of the current legal information requirement and suggests a fundamental review of these obligations.

For more information on BEUC’s position on safety, visit our dedicated page.

¹ i.e. the REACH Regulation and the Regulation on the classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures (CLP Regulation).