Brexit Update July 2020!

Brexit being implemented from 31st January 2020, the UK has formally left the EU with a withdrawal deal and it is currently in transition period up to 31st Dec. 2020. The UK and the EU have ruled out the possibility of extending the transition period beyond December 2020.

In private communication with HSE, we have been updated, that, UK is still in the transition period (TP) until 31 December 2020, and UK businesses need to continue to comply with EU REACH in their current roles in their supply chains.

HSE indicated that, at this point, we are not able to provide definitive advice regarding arrangements after the TP. The Statutory Instrument (SI) that would have implemented UK REACH in a ‘no-deal’ scenario did not come into effect as the UK left the EU with a withdrawal agreement. The extent to which the provisions in UK REACH (as it is currently drafted) will come into effect at the end of the TP will largely depend on the outcome of the UK-EU trade deal negotiations that are occurring throughout this year. Depending on the outcome, we may need to change some or all the provisions. Any transitional provisions will give sufficient time for companies to comply.

• UK REACH is based on a grandfathering system to allow companies to transfer existing authorizations and registrations over with minimum data. Full datasets will need to be submitted within two years.
• The EU's demand for full alignment on REACH in return for access to Echa's data is a sticking point, and something the UK government has rejected. It is set on implementing UK REACH from 1st January 2021, mirroring the EU legislation but with possible future divergence.
• Further, parliamentary undersecretary of state at Defra Rebecca Pow, said in her letter that UK REACH would be implemented on 1st January 2021, restating that the government was not seeking associate membership of Echa or participation in REACH.
• Earlier this year, The UK has also released policy papers on its draft UK-EU Comprehensive Free Trade Agreement (CFTA) and the annexes on its plans for the future trade relationship with the EU. The draft specifically does not mention about REACH, but it proposes to cooperate on chemicals regulation, share data, and align approaches towards classification and labeling. The draft annex suggests that both parties would agree to continue and strengthen their cooperation on chemicals regulation to facilitate trade in a way that benefits consumers, businesses, and the environment and provides for the protection of human and animal health. This may include promoting and encouraging cooperation between the respective public or private organizations responsible for the manufacture, distribution, sale, or regulation of chemicals.

We have already set up a UK based OR facility ‘GPC UK’, to support our existing and new potential clients, to be able to comply with the challenges posed by Brexit, on substance exports to the UK.