EU ministers agree to ban chemicals in toys

The proposal to ban phtalates permanently had infuriated PVC manufacturers who claimed that risk assessment procedures were being ignored and the precautionary principle misused. The European Council for Plasticisers and Intermediates (ECPI) told EurActiv risk assessments are an "integral part of the procedure" for approval and that its lawyers were now considering taking the issue before the European Court of Justice if the decision is confirmed by Parliament (see EurActiv, 7 September 2004).

In a statement released before the vote, the European Consumers Organisation (BEUC) said "dangerous chemicals do not belong in toys," basing its position on new scientific studies that "have identified phthalates as endocrine (hormone) disrupters and linked the use of phthalates to allergy, asthma and cancer". BEUC described the permanent ban on phtalates as "essential for the protection of the most vulnerable consumers".

Environmental groups applauded the ministers' decision and called on the Parliament to support the Council's position. Friends of the Earth (FoE) and Greenpeace both called on the EU's forthcoming legislation on chemicals, 'REACH', to "properly address both the phase-out of all hormone disrupters and bio-accumulative chemicals and the substitution of all dangerous chemicals with safer alternatives".

In a statement issued on 27 September, the Commission hailed the Council political agreement on phtalates as a "major step forward in protecting children's health and ensuring at the same time the efficient functioning of the single market".