Negotiations on the Construction Products Regulation (CPR which will introduce compulsory CE marking in the UK, have continued since it received its First Reading in the European Parliament in April. Because there was no agreement between the European Parliament and Council of Ministers at First Reading, the Council must now reach a ‘Common Position’ (a consensus view) on the text before re-starting formal negotiations with the Parliament for a Second Reading deal. In July 2009, the Presidency of the EU Council passed to Sweden, which aims to reach a Common Position by December 2009. This is ambitious, but there is no formal time limit to reach a Common Position, and if they do not succeed, the incoming Spanish Presidency will take over. The new European Parliament will also restart its consideration of the text, with the Internal Markets and Consumers Committee (IMCO, now chaired by the UK MEP Malcolm Harbour) taking lead responsibility. The Commission has written a response to the amendments made by the Parliament at First Reading, and the Swedish Presidency plans to meet the new Committee rapporteur (responsible for piloting the legislation through the Parliament) once appointed. Once the Council has reached a Common Position, the Second Reading in the European Parliament has to take place within three months. If the EP rejects the Council’s Common Position, then the CPR will fall. If the EP accepts the Council’s Common Position, then the CPR will be adopted. There are further, complicated stages to the process if the EP Second Reading makes further amendments to the text. If the Swedish Presidency succeeds in achieving a Common Position by December and there is a Second Reading deal in early 2010, the main provisions of the CPR would come into effect in the UK in 2012. Some of the administrative sections (such as setting up new processes or renaming bodies) would apply sooner. Unsurprisingly, the outstanding issues for conclusion in the Council Working Group are the most complex, and also those that are central to the whole Regulation. They include:
– The scope of the CE marking requirement: who needs to declare performance, when and covering what characteristics.
– The treatment of small businesses and manufacturers of bespoke products. The UK Government’s negotiating position is based on the principles that the CPR should be as beneficial to business and as cost effective as possible, as well as respecting Member State subsidiarity. It believes that it is vital that the CPR text is straightforward and unambiguous, so that industry, regulators and market surveillance authorities share a clear understanding of what the Regulation means when it comes into force across the EU.