- Product safety laws to be overhauled to better protect
consumers when shopping online and buying modern products like
smart devices
- Reformed furniture and fire safety regulations will better
protect consumers in the modern home including a reduction in the
use of harmful chemicals
- Plans will cut business costs and reduce unnecessary red tape
with the introduction of measures like electronic labelling,
enabling them to invest more in their own firms
The UK’s product safety laws – which are over 30 years old – are
set to be overhauled in a bid to make them fit for emerging
technologies and new shopping habits, the government has
announced today (Wednesday 2 August).
Much of the UK’s product safety regime has been underpinned by
outdated EU laws, with some dating back to 1987. Having left the
EU, the UK can now create its own product safety regime to better
suit British businesses and ensure consumers have the same
protections when shopping online as on the high street.
Today’s consultation will seek views on how the UK can better
regulate 21st century innovations like internet connected devices
including smart watches and speakers, and artificial
intelligence, while ensuring British businesses are not stifled
by costly red tape.
Businesses will also save time and money thanks to the
government’s proposals to introduce e-labelling – a Brexit
benefit and a move that would go further than the EU. This would
reduce waste, relieve industry burdens, and allow product
information to be easily and regularly updated.
Business Secretary said:
I am determined to use our post-Brexit freedoms to identify
outdated EU laws placing unnecessary burdens on business and
reform them to benefit both companies and consumers.
These changes will provide better consumer protections while
upholding our world-leading safety standards and will also cut
costs for business to ensure they have the freedom they need to
innovate and thrive, helping to create jobs and grow the economy.
In addition to the Product Safety Review, we will be launching a
consultation on a proposed new approach to the fire safety of
domestic upholstered furniture. This will be aimed at improving
fire safety standards for consumers and addressing modern day
domestic hazards.
Tina McKenzie, Policy Chair of the Federation of Small
Businesses (FSB) said:
We welcome measures to ease the burden on small businesses while
ensuring high safety standards. Regulatory requirements should be
designed to be as consistent and straightforward as possible to
reduce the costs of compliance for small firms.
The complexity of the current UK product safety system means that
firms, especially new entrants and small businesses, can struggle
to understand their obligations, resulting in hindered growth and
hampered consumer choice.
The National Fire Chiefs Council:
The National Fire Chiefs Council welcome the consultation and the
opportunity to be involved. We are supportive of the draft
essential safety requirements as they seek to maintain and
improve fire safety. This is demonstrated through the focus of
stopping and delaying ignition to aid escape in the event of a
fire.
A Silentnight spokesperson said:
We welcome the publishing of the new approach for consultation.
We believe proposals such as representative final product testing
will improve both fire and product safety, curtailing the endemic
use of chemical flame retardants within the industry. Moreover,
the essential safety requirements have the potential to galvanise
innovation within the sector, facilitating adoption of a circular
economy and achieving Net Zero.
In addition to the recent extension of CE marking, these
reforms have the potential to have a hugely positive impact on
hundreds of thousands of businesses in the UK currently impacted
by outdated and cumbersome regulations, with the overwhelming
majority of these being small or micro businesses.
The UK government is on course to have passed legislation by the
end of this year which will revoke or reform more than 2,000
pieces of Retained EU Law. This comes after an earlier raft of
announcements similarly aimed at helping consumers to clamp down
on subscription traps and fake reviews.
