Dr & Mrs gonzi - MaltaRightNow.com

| EU |A European Toy SafetyCampaign for theChristmas Seasonby Brenda AzzopardiThe European Commission has just triggered offregulations in time for Christmas, after thousandsof suspected toys - many of them Chinese-madeproducts containing high amounts of lead, paint andchoking hazards - were sold in European markets.During the last few months, various batches of toyswere, for some reason or other, found to be unsuitablefor children. Last August, the EU took action byordering the withdrawal of millions of Chinese-madeproducts from shops’ shelves.To increase the awareness of both parents andchildren of this problem, and on how this should betackled to avoid potential danger, Commissionerfor Consumer Protection Meglenda Kuneva, hascome up with a new toy safety campaign, entitled‘Safety Holidays’. Consumer organisations aroundEurope are to assume responsibility for increasingawareness in their respective countries, at local level.According to the European Commission, the currentEU regulatory framework; namely the General ProductSafety Directive together with its RAPEX system, isfundamentally sound, but a double check at everystage of production and effective enforcement of thepresent legal framework would put it on a firmer basis.A review of toy safety checks is also in its finalstages, while the issue of proposals for a directiveon toy safety before Christmas is also in the pipeline,in response to the European Parliament’s requestto improve theCE markingsystem. TheCE markshows thatan item meetsall the essentialrequirements setout by the relevantEU directives and that theapplicable conformity assessmentprocedures have been followed. The current systemdepends more on the conduction of the safety testscarried out by manufacturers themselves, whereasaccording to the European Parliament, checks andcertifications by independent inspectors will be moreeffective.MEPs are now demanding that all toy productsshould clearly show the place of production. Since theendorsement of a proposed Directive by the EU-27before the festive season is highly unlikely, some kindof measure is needed to step up action improvingthe marking system of toys during this campaign.Consistently, the Commissioner has underlined thatthere will be no more compromise where safety issuesare concerned and where European values are atstake. Also, even though the Commission believes inopen markets and fair competition, this will never becarried out at the expense of safety. As for trade withChina, it is in the interest of both parties to maintainstrong relations, as long as problems relating toproduct safety are solved.The ultimate goal for the EU is to strike acompromise between business and consumers, whereone would find companies guaranteeing safe goods;while parents, especially, are being warned about thehazards involved. The ‘Safety Holidays’ campaignis intended to provide direction on how to choose achild’s Christmas present; defining, in the process,which goods are dangerous and what precautionsshould be taken to protect children. In the end, actionat both EU and national level must go hand-in-hand togive consumers the high standards they deserve. For further information contact Forum Malta fl-Ewropaon telephone 2590 9101, or by email on foruminfo@gov.mt.Brenda Azzopardi is Research Analyst at Forum Malta fl-Ewropa22 L&s | DECEMBER ’07