EU’s Grinch-like plans may hit UK companies with new requirement for ‘toy passports’ | Politics | News | EUROtoday

A senior Tory MP has warned toy producers within the UK face a nightmare earlier than Christmas, because the EU continues meddling with guidelines and rules. The European Commission not too long ago proposed new adjustments that can quickly power UK toys offered to the continent to come back with a ‘toy passport’, including to burdensome rules confronted by companies.

The proposals would amend present rules, banning toys containing dangerous substances, together with carcinogenic, mutagenic or reprotoxic chemical substances (CMRs).

However the EU’s new coverage would lengthen these guidelines to cowl extra supplies, and will result in over 26 million toys being withdrawn from the market.

Any toy producer, together with these in Britain, hoping to spice up festive cheer in European properties at Christmas will now be pressured to adjust to the brand new guidelines.

The House of Commons’ European Scrutiny Committee has now raised considerations concerning the new guidelines.

Sir Bill Cash warned: “These new rules could have a significant impact on toy producers in the UK.”

“While we note that the Government’s assessment is at an early stage, we call for the Government to provide more information on the extent of divergence between the UK and EU on toy safety.

“The Committee shares the Government’s view that Northern Ireland must have unfettered access to the rest of the UK market.

“We urge the Government to set out how it will make sure that remains the case, and how it will consult NI manufacturers on the likely impact of the new rules.”

The Committee has additionally written to the Government, demanding to know what plans it has in the direction of diverging from the EU’s pricey rules as they search to reap the benefits of post-Brexit freedoms.

Sir Bill can also be calling on the Government to seek the advice of with producers on the EU’s toy passport proposals, not least given their potential software in Northern Ireland because of Rishi Sunak’s Windsor Framework settlement, struck with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in February of this 12 months.

The EU’s personal influence evaluation says its “stringent” rules are “costly for companies”, however warn disreputable firms ignoring guidelines are inflicting an “uneven playing field”.

They speculate that as of 2019 the non-compliant toys market could possibly be €1.65 billion.

The influence evaluation additionally warns that the brand new guidelines may price corporations hundreds per toy simply to verify there adjust to the brand new chemical limits.

A survey carried out by the EU across the proposed toy crackdown noticed business argue that the present guidelines are “sufficiently protective and there was no need to strengthen its requirement”, which stood in distinction to solutions from client and environmental teams.

Toy producers additionally warned that the brand new guidelines will merely lead to much more non-compliant toys available in the market, with few compliant toys for shoppers.