On 22 January 2020, the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee (IMCO) of the European Parliament hold a legislative scrutiny session concerning the implementation of the Construction Products Regulation (CPR). Gwenole Cozigou, Acting Director General DG GROW / Director Directorate C -Sustainable Industry and Mobility, represented the European Commission.
On this occasion, Mr Cozigou began by presenting the major differences between the CPR and the New Legislative Framework Directives and Regulations, as well as the various CPR evaluations that have already been completed since its full implementation in 2013.
He added that a review might be required as the shortcomings of the harmonisation process have now become visible since the recent court cases. If a review would take place, it would need to address systemic challenges, such as market surveillance, the relationship between the European Organisation for Technical Assessment (EOTA) and the European Committee for Standardisation (CEN), as well as simplification measures, in addition to new challenges, as for instance environmental aspects (circular economy), safety aspects and adaptation to innovation.
Furthermore, given that the needs of Member States are not being met, he continued mentioning that DG GROW is discussing with them in parallel on how to make the present system work. The other stakeholders will be approached at a later stage. He concluded by stating that all possibilities and options remain on the table, even repealing, attempting to repair or enhancing the CPR. Therefore, the European Commission is conducting a new study (July 2019 to July 2020) in order to better assess the different policy options.
Finally, the Members of the European Parliament took the floor and raised different topics such as further harmonisation (related to earthquake and fire safety), EOTA’s current and future role (improve or remove), consumer safety’s role and the lack of use of simplification measures. The IMCO committee also announced the drafting of an implementation report on the CPR.
EBC, as the coordinator of construction-related activities in Small Business Standards (SBS), stands ready to follow up and to defend the interests of construction SMEs in the context of a potential CPR review. EBC position on the future of the Construction Products Regulation (CPR) and its implementation |