NGO pushes for action on chemicals ahead of EU summit

8 May 2019 / Alternatives assessment & substitution, Europe, REACH, Substances of concern

Member states should commit to closing regulatory loopholes concerning chemicals at an EU summit on 9 May, an NGO has said.

The informal meeting in Sibiu, Romania, will bring together the heads of state or government of the EU, Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker and president of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani.

In a 29 April letter addressed to the Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union, the Health and Environment Alliance (HEAL) called for delegates to close regulatory gaps on cosmetics, toys and food packaging.

Additionally, the Council could, HEAL said, input into the general update of the EU regulatory framework on endocrine disruptors, and "mandate the European Commission to update the first and still current strategy, just twenty years after was published".

The EU executive issued a Communication on its new strategy in November, but HEAL said this lacked proposals to control EDCs across all EU laws as well as a concrete action plan.

Romania's presidency ends in June, when Finland takes over for the next six-month term.