§ Mr. BurnsTo ask the Secretary of State for Trade and Industry what changes have been made to(a) the Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 and (b) the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994 since their implementation; and if he will make a statement.[126023]
§ Mr. Alan Johnson[holding answer 15 June 2000]: The information is as follows:
(a) The Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 are national Regulations and no amendments have been made since they came into force. However, the Regulations recognise that British Standards that are referenced in the Regulations may need to be revised or amended from time to time and they therefore make provision for such reference to be construed as a reference to the revised or amended standard where the amendment or revision has been approved by the Secretary of State. Ministerial approval of the revision of a number of British Standards was granted in 1998. The Department will be initiating a review of the Plugs and Sockets etc. (Safety) Regulations 1994 before the end of the year, and will be consulting with industry and other interested parties.73W(b) The Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994 implement into UK law the European Council Directive 73/23/EEC, normally referred to as the Low Voltage Directive. No amendments have been made to the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations 1994 since they came into force, and as the appropriate measures are in place I have no plans to review the Regulations.