As the trade association and training body for the safety netting and temporary safety systems industry, FASET aims to keep right up to date with the latest news from around the construction industry. We are pleased to share that the Construction Leadership Council has welcomed the confirmation that the UK Government has postponed planned changes to product marking rules.
As part of the UK’s departure from the European Union, changes were due to come into force on 1 January 2022 that would require products that had previously had CE markings shift across to the new United Kingdom Conformity Assessed (UKCA) mark.
However, industry had raised concerns about whether the sector was ready for the changes, with uncertainty about availability and capacity of testing for products under the new regime.
The Government has now responded, allowing CE marked products to be sold in the UK for a further 12 months. Construction Leadership Council co-chair Andy Mitchell said:
“Given the widespread pressures on product supply, we welcome this pragmatic decision by the Government to extend the deadline for CE-marked products. However, even with this extension, it will still be very challenging to ensure that the whole sector is ready for the new date, given the need to drive major increases in testing capacity. It is vital that industry continues to work with the Government to address these issues, ensuring that we don’t just postpone the crisis by 12 months, but instead establish a robust testing and marking regime to ensure the continued safety and performance of the products that we use”.