§ Mrs. Helen ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs if her Department will take into account in the Regulatory Impact Assessment of the EU REACH proposals the economic benefits to UK environmental testing laboratories of the testing work required. [140072]
§ Alun MichaelOn 29 October 2003 the European Commission presented a proposal for the regulation of chemicals. The Government will carry out a UK consultation early in the new year which will be accompanied by a Regulatory Impact Assessment.
The impact assessment will aim to assess all the major costs and benefits, both direct and indirect to industry and make an assessment of the wider impact on the UK economy.
§ Mrs. Helen ClarkTo ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs whether the DTI/ Defra Joint Environmental Markets Unit is consulted when her Department carries out regulatory impact 1209W assessments of new environmental protection measures to ensure that benefits of the measures to the UK (a) environmental technology and (b) services industry are included. [140073]
§ Mr. MorleyRegulatory Impact Assessments (RIAs) of new environmental protection measures are undertaken in accordance with the Cabinet OfficeGuidelines, "Better Policy Making: A Guide to Regulatory Impact Assessment". Among other things, this says RIAs should take account of the potential dynamic benefits of regulations and an assessment of all the business sectors affected—both positively and negatively. As part of this process, policy-makers consult with relevant stakeholders, including where appropriate representatives of the environmental goods and services industry who will then have the opportunity to make the case for the benefits. Like other parts of Government with an interest, the Joint DTI/ Defra Environmental Markets Unit will contribute as appropriate and as part of the policy-making process within Government.