(Parliamentary Under
Secretary of State for Small Business, Consumers and Corporate
Responsibility): Today, I will publish the
Government response to our consultation on Updating the Furniture
and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988, which set fire
resistance requirements for cover materials and fillings used to
make domestic upholstered furniture.
The review aimed to ensure that our legislative framework
maintains fire safety for consumers, reflects technological
advances in furniture manufacturing practices, and facilitates a
reduction in the use of hazardous flame-retardant chemicals as a
means of making furniture fire resistant.
The consultation sought views on proposals to amend the testing
regime. It also sought views on proposals for clarifying and
amending the scope of the regulations, strengthening the
traceability requirements to bring furniture into line with other
product sectors, updating labelling rules, and extending the time
period for trading standards to institute legal proceedings.
The Government is committed to protecting consumers from all
safety risks, but we will not compromise on fire safety. During
the course of the review, to ensure the highest standards, we
sought the views of Chief Scientific Advisors from relevant
departments across government.
The Government will now develop a new approach to address the
different sources and chemical risks posed by fire to upholstered
furniture and furnishings. It will focus on safety outcomes [such
as reduced risk of ignition, reduced risk of fire spread] and
will be underpinned by a set of essential safety requirements
which all upholstered furniture placed on the market must meet.
This approach is consistent with that taken for other consumer
products. The [new] legislation will be supported by British
Standards which will be developed by the British Standards
Institution in partnership with a wide range of stakeholders,
including industry, fire-safety experts and consumer
representatives.
This new approach will continue to ensure that manufacturers
place only safe products on the UK market. I will consult on the
detail of this new approach in due course. In the meantime, the
existing Regulations will continue to apply.
