7 Accepted

UK REACH must be reformed to enable swifter restrictions on PFAS to ensure the UK...

Recommendation
UK REACH must be reformed to enable swifter restrictions on PFAS to ensure the UK can align with emerging evidence to act more quickly on substances of concern. (Conclusion, Paragraph 37)
Government Response Summary
The government shares the ambition and is already working to reform UK REACH for swifter PFAS restrictions. They commit to targeted engagement and public consultation, aiming to introduce reforms and necessary legislation by December 2028.
Government Response
Accepted
HM Government Accepted
We share the Committee’s ambition to ensure UK REACH remains an effective and proportionate framework for managing risks to human health and the environment, including those posed by PFAS, while supporting innovation and maintaining industry competitiveness. We are already working to reform UK REACH so that restrictions can be applied more quickly, more efficiently and in a way that is more closely aligned with our closest trading partner, the EU. This would represent a different approach from the current process, rather than simply reducing the maximum timescales within the existing statutory model. We intend to draw from EU regulatory decisions unless there are compelling reasons to diverge. In this context, EU regulatory decisions include final EU REACH restrictions. In so doing, we will retain full control over our regulatory decisions. This approach aims to reduce uncertainty, provide a clearer direction of travel for both industry and regulators, and avoid the time-consuming, costly and unnecessary duplication of EU scientific assessments. To introduce these reforms, we plan to undertake both targeted engagement on key policy design issues, including what would be compelling reasons for divergence, and formal public consultation. We are committed to introducing reforms, including any necessary legislation, by December 2028.