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RAPEX report: A step in the right direction…

17 April 2008
by eub2 -- last modified 17 April 2008

Today the European Commission is presenting its Annual Report 2007 on the operation of the RAPEX system, the European rapid alert system for all dangerous consumer products (with the exception of food, pharmaceutical and medical devices).


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We welcome the efforts made by Commissioner Kuneva to tackle the difficult issue of market surveillance. The  report underlines  that notifications are on  the  increase. We can  therefore be pleased  that  controls  seem  to be  intensifying, and  that Member States are exchanging more and more information on dangerous products.
 
However  it  is also perfectly  legitimate  to be concerned when reading  the report: when one knows that given that just one notification can mean millions of products, one wonders how many products actually slip through the net.
 
There  is  still  a  lot  to  be  done;  consumers  are  still  exposed  to  a  number  of  dangerous products, and we are not surprised  to see  toys and cosmetics  in  the  "top  five"! While  it  is true  that  market  surveillance  mechanisms  and  cooperation  between  national  authorities need  to  be  strengthened,  it  is  also  essential  to  reinforce  European  legislation  on  product safety  and  the  responsibilities  of  businesses.  Unfortunately  the  current  revisions  of legislation on toy safety and cosmetic products are, for the moment, far from satisfactory.
 
Monique Goyens, Director General of BEUC stated:  "RAPEX  is a good  indicator, but we will only be satisfied when  the  laws are stricter and make manufacturers genuinely responsible for the products they put on the market".

The European Consumers' Organisation (BEUC) was created in 1962 by the consumer organisations of Belgium, Luxembourg, France, the Netherlands, Italy and Germany. After working together for a number of years, these organisations decided to create a European association, based in Brussels, right at the heart of Community policy. BEUC was a pioneer, one of the first lobbying organisations to set up base in the European capital in a bid to influence the decision-making process.

BEUC - The European Consumers' Organisation