ERU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 9: Orienteringsnotat om oplæg til nye rammer for udarbejdelse af mandater for de såkaldte harmoniserede standarder, der udarbejdes som led i fælleseuropæisk lovgivning for produkter

Erhvervsudvalget 2019-20
ERU Alm.del Bilag 9
Offentligt

NOTAT

23. september 2019

19/04931-6

The Danish Government’s response to the public consultation on the

Commission's proposal on a new guidance on the practical aspects of

the implementation of the European Standardisation Regulation

International standards are vital to the better regulation agenda

Denmark welcomes the opportunity to comment on the Commission's pro-

posal on a new guidance on the practical aspects of the implementation of

the European Standardisation Regulation.

The Danish Government is a strong supporter of the better regulation

agenda and acknowledges that the European Commission is likewise de-

termined to ensure that its’ proposals meet policy goals at minimum cost

and deliver maximum benefits to citizens, businesses and workers while

avoiding all unnecessary regulatory burdens. This is key to support and en-

sure competitiveness in the global economy and continued job growth in

the EU while maintaining social and environmental sustainability.

European standards, including harmonised standards, play a key role in

simplifying EU regulation and reducing burdens and costs for businesses

and is thus integral to the better regulation agenda. For this reason, Euro-

pean standardisation is an important tool in relation to the better regulation

agenda.

European standards replace potentially contradictory national standards in

Member States, thus decreasing burdens for businesses, especially SMEs.

Businesses are able to sell their products or services throughout the single

market with almost 500 million consumers without further customisation

through the use of the CE mark. European businesses can in general choose

to use a harmonised standard to document that their products to comply

with a given European law (presumption of conformity). Furthermore,

standards are regularly updated to include and disseminate new knowledge

and technology, which stimulates innovation and competition.

ERU, Alm.del - 2019-20 - Bilag 9: Orienteringsnotat om oplæg til nye rammer for udarbejdelse af mandater for de såkaldte harmoniserede standarder, der udarbejdes som led i fælleseuropæisk lovgivning for produkter

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For these reasons, it is essential that the European standardisation system

is able to keep pace with the technological development and that standards

continue to be a relevant, useful and attractive tool for European busi-

nesses.

Concerns about the proposed new guidance

The Danish business and industry sector have expressed concern that the

Commission’s

proposal on a new guidance on the practical aspects of the

implementation of the European Standardisation Regulation threatens to

undermine the efficiency of the current European standardisation system

and thus cause significant burdens to businesses across Europe.

The Danish government acknowledges the relation between harmonised

standards and European legislation but encourages the Commission to

maintain and respect the original division of roles within the New Ap-

proach. This division ensures that the Commission sets the overall goals

whereas participants from businesses and organisations are responsible for

developing and setting frames and requirements for the more specific and

concrete technical aspects of international standards.

The Danish government encourages the Commission to engage in a con-

structive dialogue with member states in order to work on a solution, which

does not undermine the European standardisation system.

It remains unclear how the new working methods and processes introduced

in the Commission’s new guidance will be implemented in the standardi-

sation system and what their implications might be.

Among other things, the following aspects are of special concern for the

Danish government:

Expiry dates

From a Danish perspective, it is problematic that all future harmonised

standards currently being developed are based on temporary mandates with

a fixed expiry date. In practice, this will imply that when the mandate ex-

pires, the standards covered by the mandate becomes invalid. This creates

general uncertainty about the status of the standard. It is crucial that there

are valid standardisation mandates on which standards can continuously be

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harmonised, developed, and revised. It is currently unclear what the conse-

quences are for the presumption of conformity with the relevant regulation

if a mandate for the harmonised standards expires. In addition, it remains

unclear what will happen with the standards. This needs to be clarified

moving forward.

Degree of detail

Mandates in the new format are very detailed and in some cases have in-

cluded very specific technical details or an exhaustive list. It is problematic

if the mandates become too detailed and rigid, as this might result in the

standards being irrelevant for industry to adopt. It is important to ensure

that there is a certain degree of freedom in the development of standards in

order to ensure market and consumer relevance.

The new set-up requires mandates to be developed for revision and updat-

ing of existing standards. Together with the introduction of expiry dates,

this will potentially create major pressure and work-load on the Commis-

sion and the standardisation system that will be very burdensome for all

stakeholders and potentially make international standards a less attractive

and effective tool for businesses.

Handling of formal objections

The Danish government would also invite the Commission to look into the

process regarding formal objections on specific standards. This should be

addressed which might be in the form of a more formal procedures and

deadlines in handling objections, to ensure an efficient and timely handling

of these.

Planning of meetings

The Danish government would also ask the Commission to take into con-

sideration optimal and efficient use of the resources of the members of

standardisation committees, when planning meetings regarding standardi-

sation. Specifically, the current approach to writing of eco-standards, where

one meeting covers several non-related issues cause considerable pressure

on national standardisation experts.