At the meeting, following a discussion on the amendment of packaging waste regulation, rapporteur Maria Spyraki presented the key points of her draft report on the European Commission’s proposal on on Classification, Labelling and Packaging of substances and mixtures (CLP) regulation. After the presentation, additional comments made by shadow rapporteurs from S&D and RENEW, which was followed by the reaction from the representatives of the European Commission.
MEP Spyraki – as well as multiple shadow rapporteurs – were highlighting how the CLP proposal’s definition for multi-constituent substances is not consistent with how such substances are defined within the Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) regulation. She expressed her desire to therefore remove this definition from the proposal, and rely on the definition outlined in REACH. In this context, the issues surrounding REACH were also acknowledged, however MEP Spyraki highlighted that the parliament consistently urged the REACH revision. The role of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA) was also discussed, as in the draft report, MEP Spyraki called for the development of a “guidance clarifying the scientific principles from which a harmonised classification for a group of substances can be derived” by the agency. Strengthening ECHA’s jurdistiction was also called for.
Aurel Ciobanu Dordea, representing Directorate-General for Environment expressed the Commission’s thanks for the comments, but pleaded for thorough reflection on some of the proposed changes, as some of them, according to him, may undermine the CLP’s effectivenes. He highlighted that human health considerations were prioritised in the regulation. Hans Ingels, from Directorate-General for Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs also commented on the importance of CLP as an instrument of the single market, and asked for continuous collaboration. The meeting finished by the participants expressing hope for the conclusion of CLP over the course of this term.
