§ Dr. Liam FoxTo ask the President of the Board of Trade whether he will make a statement on the accreditation of organisations who wish to offer certification to the Environmental Management Systems Standard BS 7750.
§ Mr. McLoughlinMy Department, in conjunction with the Department of the Environment, has today issued a consultation document on the implementation of the EC regulation establishing a Community eco-management and audit scheme and the provision of an accreditation system for organisations wishing to certificate compliance to BS7750. We propose that the National Accreditation Council for Certification Bodies be asked to set up 127W arrangements to accredit organisations to certificate to BS7750 and to act as verifiers under the EC Eco-Management and Audit Scheme Regulation. NACCB will need to be reorganised and to take on environmental expertise. The consultation document also signals our intention to enlarge the remit of the United Kingdom Ecolabelling Board to become the competent body under the terms of the regulation. The document will be sent to parties with a known interest and will be made available to others with an interest on request. I have arranged for copies of the consultation document to be placed in the Libraries of both Houses.