Unilateral recognition of Europe’s CE Mark would benefit British businesses and consumers - IEA report finds

14 Feb 2022 03:27 PM

Avoiding unnecessary regulatory divergence could save consumers money.

Throughout the Brexit process techUK’s Product Technical Policy & Standards committee has been emphasising to government that regulatory divergence from the European Union creates unnecessary costs and administrative burdens for businesses and ultimately makes goods placed on the UK market more expensive for consumers. 

A new report from the Institute for Economic Affairs (IEA) Changing the rules: A unilateral approach to non-tariff barriers calls on the UK Government to reduce costs and increase choice for British consumers by recognising EU product regulations and conformity assessments, where these are in the interests of UK consumers and businesses. The report does not call for formal alignment with EU standards, but simply to apply these where it makes sense, with benefits for consumer choice and cutting down on double compliance. 

techUK believes that enabling businesses to continue to use the EU’s CE Mark as a path to compliance for goods on the UK market is a proactive and pragmatic measure that prioritises consumers, would help to address cost of living concerns, and would demonstrate the UK’s commitment to free and open trade.

We are encouraged to see that the new Minister of State for Brexit Opportunities has welcomed the report and committed to removing non-tariff barriers wherever possible. 

Please see below a consolidated summary of the report and its recommendations.

Context to the report:

Rationale for the recommendations:

Companies interested in these issues are invited to get in touch with our Head of Programme: Market Acess & Consumer Tech Lewis Walmesley-Browne at lewis.wbrowne@techuk.org