§ Mr. David PorterTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he will take steps to include all children's clothing in legislation covering fire retardant materials in the same degree as presently covers furniture; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Leigh[holding answer 5 June 1991]: No. It would not be reasonable for clothing to meet fire resistance requirements to the same degree applicable to the covers of upholstered furniture. Such fire resistant treatments are not suitable for most of the lightweight fabrics used in summerwear, and in the limited range of fabrics where it might be possible the comfort of the garment would be severely affected.
§ Mr. David PorterTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry if he has any plans to extend existing regulations under consumer protection legislation to include shell suits and similar fashion wear in respect of fire resistant materials; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Leigh[holding answer 5 June 1991]: We have no present plans to extend the scope of the Nightwear (Safety) Regulations to daywear garments for children. However, 294W section 10 of the Consumer Protection Act 1987, the general safety requirement, makes it an offence to supply consumer goods, including articles of clothing, that are not reasonably safe having regard to all the circumstances.
My Department has recently advised the British Standards Institution of its support for the development of a flammability specification that could be applied to children's daywear garments. In the interim, the Department is supporting the enforcement authorities in their discussions with the clothing industry on a voluntary scheme for flammability labelling of childrenswear. We shall continue to monitor developments closely.