Overview
ENDS Report quoted Steptoe partner Darren Abrahams and associate Tom Gillett in an article titled, "EU alignment and a future chemicals bill: Three key points from HSE's proposed chemicals legislative reforms," which breaks down the Health and Safety Executive's official response to its consultation on UK chemicals law reforms—covering alignment with the EU, a risk‑based approach to active substance renewals for biocides, and prospects for new primary legislation. The piece highlights HSE's plan to use the EU as the only trusted jurisdiction for recognition of foreign approvals and signals that some changes will require a future chemicals bill.
Commenting on EU alignment, Darren Abrahams said it "remains to be seen whether the default commitment to alignment relates to all decision‑making processes so this could be read as an acceptance that, going forward, the UK will defer to EU scientific opinions on many more decisions."
On legislative process, Tom Gillett noted that the HSE "anticipates that these changes will be implemented through primary legislation," and that HSE "may need to put more meat on the bones before taking it to parliament for scrutiny."
Read the full article in ENDS Report.
