Number 96 – June 2008

    Research projects | Horizontal issues | Child safety | Child Safety & Design for All | Design for All |Design for All & Environment | Domestic Appliances & Design for All | Domestic appliances | Environment & Domestic Appliances | Environment | Information society | Information Society & Design for All | Services | Services & Design for All | Traffic safety | Other Issues | News from other Organisations | Vacancies | Miscellaneous

    ANEC in China          

ANEC Secretary-General, Stephen Russell, joined the delegation of Commissioner Meglena Kuneva on her recent visit to China. The principal aim of the visit was to review progress of the commitments made during the visit of the Commissioner in July 2007 to strengthen EU-China product safety controls. There was also discussion of plans for future co-operation, in particular, the revision of the current EU-China Memorandum on consumer product safety and preparation of the first EU-China-US trilateral summit on product safety in Brussels this November.

BEUC President, Rasmus Kjeldahl, also joined the delegation. It was the first time ANEC and BEUC had been invited to join a Commissioner on an official visit and reflected the importance Commissioner Kuneva places on the contribution of both organisations to heightening consumer protection.
In Beijing, the delegation met Mr Li Changjiang, the Minister responsible for AQSIQ (General Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection and Quarantine) and Mr Zhou Bohua, the Minister for Industry and Commerce. The Beijing meetings also featured the Second EU-China Roundtable on Product Safety and Consumer Protection at which ANEC and BEUC both spoke.

In Guangzhou, heart of the industrial region of the Pearl River Delta, the delegation met the Mayor of Guangzhou and toured a local governmental testing laboratory. The laboratory was responsible for testing a wide range of products, from food to toys.

During the tour of the laboratory, Stephen Russell commented: “Although it is clear the Chinese government is making great efforts to confirm a culture of quality with the biggest and most reputable manufacturers here, I am less certain the same controls are being extended – or can be extended – to the smallest producers. That means we in Europe must redouble our efforts to strengthen market enforcement and hold importers to account. However, I have learned that even larger manufacturers find the system of European legislation and standardisation complex. There seems a need for us to seek a simplification, especially in pursuit of an international standard for toys that can meet the requirements of all regions of the world, not least Europe.”

The Commissioner concluded her mission with meetings in Hong Kong and a tour of Sichuan province, devastated by the 12 May earthquake.

Research projects

ANEC Research and Testing Project on child safety in cars

ANEC commissioned a study to contribute to an understanding of how children, aged three years or less, should best be restrained in cars. The work was carried out by Vehicle Safety Consultancy, UK. There is a mix of current practice, with Nordic countries traditionally keeping their children in rearward facing restraints until three or four years old, whereas the rest of Europe and the US traditionally turn their children forward facing at one year of age or less.

The current study was undertaken in order to examine the hypothesis that keeping children rearward facing until they are four years old would be the best method of improving protection for this age group. To this effect the US, Swedish and UK data have been examined. This examination showed children in forward-facing seats suffered head, neck, chest and abdominal injuries in circumstances in which a rearward facing restraint would have provided much better protection.

ANEC concludes, as do all other researchers who have examined this topic that the rearward-facing restraints offer a higher level of safety over forward-facing restraints to children, at least up to the age of four years, and would have prevented many fatalities had their use been more widespread.

It is clear a gulf has developed between the conclusions of the technical community, based on accident and test data, and advice provided to consumers through legislation. Through the Mass Group classification, European legislation implies that it is safe for a child to travel forward-facing from 9kg onwards, a weight which can be reached as early as the age of 9 months. ANEC believes that the consumer is not receiving the best technical advice through the Mass Group approach.

In response to consumer crashworthiness programmes focused on the protection of adults travelling in the front seats, contemporary design places considerable emphasis on the crash resistance of cars to frontal impacts. It is now necessary to offer children a similar level of protection through legislation. ANEC therefore urges legislators to revise the law on the use of child restraints in order to provide the most vulnerable consumers with the level of protection they deserve.

Ahead of our recommended changes to legislation, we urge the manufacturers of child-restraint systems and the car manufacturers to collaborate voluntary in order to make Scandinavian-style rearward-facing seats for children up to 4 years available to consumers throughout the rest of Europe.

The report of the study is available at: http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2008-TRAF-003.pdf

ANEC study on “Consumer requirements for RFID standardisation”

Although consumer awareness of RFID technology is relatively low, the use of RFID tags is a fast growing phenomenon and their applications are diverse. The ANEC research showed that the main concerns of consumers included people-tracking and behaviour-monitoring; the aggregation of personal information and the covert use of RFID tags. The study highlighted that the current European personal data protection legislation enables a proper treatment of privacy aspects related to RFID. However, from the consumers’ perspective, the debate over the precise definition of ‘personal data’ and how “informed consent” should be implemented, is still open. It may be that robust standards are needed to make RFID deployment both secure and compatible with this legislation, but the first step is ensuring that the law is applied to RFID systems in a way that best defends the consumer interest.
(Please see continuation under Information Society section)

ANEC study shows options to traditional environmental product declarations

Considering the current efforts to promote sustainable consumption and production at the EU level, it is crucial to ensure that consumers are given the tools to make informed choices. Clear indications regarding the relative magnitude of the environmental impact of one product, compared to another one, is indispensable in order for consumers and other non-professionals to play a part in achieving the goal of a more sustainable society. In this context, ANEC considers Type III Environmental Declarations (also referred to as Environmental Product Declarations, EPDs) as unsuitable for consumers and other stakeholders in their present form. The ANEC study addresses the possibilities for benchmarking and the provision of additional environmental information beyond that normally found in EPDs.
(Please see continuation under Environment section)

ANEC publishes study on balcony barriers and pool fences

The ANEC Child Safety Working Group commissioned research in 2007 into the dimensions and design of balcony barriers and swimming pool fences. Very serious, often fatal, accidents happen when children fall through, such barriers and fences. There are a variety of regulations and standards in different EU countries for these products. Following literary research, practical tests were carried out with around 100 children, the main purposes being to determine height requirements dependent on the age of the child; testing some of the most common solutions used to discourage their ability to climb and determining the main factors associated with the children’s ability to fall or pass through a barrier or fence.

The project focused on the skills of children, aged 9 to 75 months. The 13 barriers under analysis replicated some of the major types of restraining devices available on the market. The design of good barriers that can delay child access probably has the same cost as the design of unsafe barriers. But safe barriers will save lives. Taller barriers offer additional protection, although it is not only a matter of dimension: motor ability and strength of the child play a major role. ANEC members are of the opinion that the distance between the floor and the first bar, or the beginning of the barrier, should be no more than 5 cm.

The full study is available at
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2007-CHILD-003(Part1).pdf
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2007-CHILD-003(Part2).pdf
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2007-CHILD-003(Part3).pdf

ANEC will undertake a second project on barriers and fences in 2009 in order to define further arguments that can support our demand for harmonised standards for these products.

Horizontal Issues

New Legislative Framework

The New Legislative Framework (alias the ‘Revision of the New Approach’, alias the ‘Internal Market for Goods Package’) was adopted by the Council on 23 June under the co-decision procedure: the adoption by the European Parliament took place on 21 February 2008.

From 1 January 2010, the NLF will extend the principles of the New Approach and CE Marking to most products. As noted in Newsletter 94, ANEC does not believe that market surveillance and enforcement measures will be effective enough to ensure the application of the new laws in the market. Although the Member States – who remain responsible for market enforcement under subsidiarity – are directed to ensure sufficient resources are made available, ANEC doubts that competing national priorities will allow the necessary funding.

In honour of the former Director of Regulatory Policy in DG Enterprise, Mr Michel Ayral, who died in service earlier this year, the NLF has become informally known as the ‘Ayral Package’.

EFTA study and Workshop on Certification and Marks in Europe

On 11 June 2008, EFTA hosted a workshop entitled "Certification and marking for Europe". The workshop, organised in co-operation with the European Commission and the European Parliament, was held following the publication of an EFTA study on certification and marks in Europe and was attended by over 100 participants. ANEC Programme Manager Tania Vandenberghe presented the consumer view at the workshop, by answering the following questions:

• What are consumer needs and expectations with regard to safe products?

ANEC said that consumers expect that the products they find on the market are safe. Consumers need to have confidence in all aspects of the market place, which also means they must be able to rely on certification marks and labelling. The highest level of product safety which is possible and practicable should be achieved through legislation, standards and most importantly market surveillance.

• What is the contribution of certification and marking?

ANEC mentioned that 3rd party certification marks contribute to levels of consumer safety, but pointed out that certification marks have been undermined as a result of the confusion which has surrounded CE Marking. ANEC reiterated that CE Marking is no guarantee for safety. Marks should give the information consumers want, reduce testing & certification costs, and promote better transparency. Finally, ANEC said it was against a proliferation of marks .

• Can certification and marking meet these needs and expectations alone?

ANEC is firm in the belief that certification and marking alone will not reduce the risks related to products. Enforcement is crucial. Products put on the market need to be safe, no matter how many marks they have on them.

ANEC also referred to the findings of the study relating to consumers and believes that the study gives too little evidence to conclude whether consumers do or do not look for marks. In addition, consumer organisations which test products submit all products to the same test regime, regardless of whether they have marks on them or not, because of the large number of false, misleading and counterfeited marks appearing on products.

Most stakeholders, including ANEC, were not in favour of having a Consumer Safety Mark (see below). Furthermore, most stakeholders – with the clear exception of ANEC - felt CE Marking to be working well.
EFTA will produce a paper summarising the experiences and ideas emerging from the study and Workshop. However, it is already clear the EFTA Secretariat believes our continued criticism of CE Marking to be wrong, following the adoption of the New Legislative Framework by the European Parliament and European Council.

Stephen Russell, ANEC Secretary-General, commented: “ANEC will continue to oppose CE Marking – which we believe to be misleading for consumers – and I consider such opposition to be consistent with our European democracy”.

The full ANEC presentation can be found at:

http://www.anec.eu/attachments/TVA%20at%20EFTA%20Workshop%20Marks%2011%20June%202008.pdf  

ANEC attends enlarged meeting of 98/34 Committee

ANEC was invited, with other stakeholders (ECOS, ETUI-REHS and NORMAPME), to participate in the meeting of the Committee which supports the implementation of the 98/34 Directive on Standards and Technical Regulations held on 13 June 2008.

For many years, ANEC had wished to attend the so-called ‘enlarged’ meetings in which CEN/CENELEC/ETSI and national bodies also participate.

Among the subjects on the agenda, the Commission presented the main contents of the recently adopted Communication which focuses on standards as one of the instruments to enable innovation. ANEC Programme Manager Chiara Giovannini said that, although the Communication emphasises the importance of standardisation in supporting European industry, consumer participation in standardisation must not be forgotten. ANEC expressed concerns at the use of informal deliverables to support public policy issues, especially in the ICT sector, as it is very difficult for the consumer voice to be heard in industry dominated fora and consortia. Finally, ANEC stated that an urgent reform of the European Standardisation System is needed especially if the New Approach has to be extended to other sectors.

Commission Consultation on a future ‘Consumer Safety Mark’

On 6 June, the European Commission closed its on-line public consultation on the possible creation of a ‘consumer safety mark’. The consultation was conducted to facilitate a response from the Commission to the Parliament on the introduction of such a new mark. In its Resolution on product safety of September 2007, Parliament invited a response within 12 months.

In a common letter of 9 June to the Director-General of DG Enterprise, ANEC and BEUC expressed reservations at the introduction of a new safety mark as a means to enhance consumer protection. Our principal concern is that the introduction of a mark would draw resources away from surveillance and enforcement activities. Indeed, without an effective system of market surveillance and enforcement – which we do not believe exists today – no mark is able to provide the assurance consumers seek.

ANEC signs the Register of Interest Representatives

ANEC became the 82nd organisation to sign the Register of Interest Representatives, introduced by the European Commission on 23 June 2008 as a voluntary measure to bring more transparency to the activities of lobbyists.
The entry for ANEC can be found at:
https://webgate.ec.europa.eu/transparency/regrin/consultation/
displaylobbyist.do?id=507800799-30

Child Safety

Revision of the Toy Safety Directive: ANEC speaks to the IMCO Committee of the European Parliament

A Public Hearing on Toy Safety was held in the European Parliament on 23 June, in view of the revision of the Toy Safety Directive. ANEC Programme Manager Tania Vandenberghe was invited by MEP Marianne Thyssen, Rapporteur, to present the views of ANEC.

ANEC made a plea to introduce a more flexible tool to adapt the Directive more quickly in cases of urgent need, and illustrated with examples that standardisation is not always the appropriate tool when it comes to setting safety levels for toys. Highly political issues, such as setting limit values directly linked to the health and safety of children should be set by the legislator and not the standards bodies. ANEC also said that the introduction of the precautionary principle is justified in the case of child safety, as the absence of accident statistics does not mean that there is a low level of risk. The attitude should be that it is more important to prevent rather than to act after accidents have occurred. Finally, ANEC asked for an EC-type examination (testing by a third party) for some categories of high-risk toys.

MEPs showed a lot of interest in all the topics presented by ANEC, as well as in the chemical requirements for toys. Following all presentations, the Rapporteur said that, in light of possible further amendments, she wanted to have some more clarification from the Commission about the borderline between comitology and standardisation and guidelines on how to best introduce the precautionary principle in the text of the Directive, in order for it to be applied in the correct way. On 24 June, the IMCO Committee discussed Mrs. Thyssen’s report. The deadline for the MEPs to submit proposals for amendments is 9 September 2008.

Commissioner Kuneva presents expert report "Evaluating business safety measures in the toy supply chain"

Helen Amundsen from the Danish Consumer Council participated as an expert in this project on behalf of ANEC and BEUC. The evaluation found that Chinese authorities and manufacturers have made significant progress in tackling toy safety concerns. Amongst the key conclusions, the report found that it is the smaller players in the market, such as small European importers and traders, and small Chinese manufacturers that tend to be the weak link in the product safety chain. They find it difficult to fully understand and the applicable legislation and standards and to ensure compliance with it. A second area where weaknesses have been detected is in relation to the expertise available within Member States’ enforcement practices and the role of the testing laboratories.

The main conclusion of the evaluation is that product safety cannot be guaranteed by final product testing alone, but has to be embedded in the entire product development and production process. Adopting and maintaining a strong quality and safety culture is a critical element in ensuring continuous attention to product safety issues.

Although the project focused on the toy sector, several findings will be pertinent to other product groups and will have to be addressed with the relevant sectors directly.

The report presents over 50 recommendations to strengthen the current system for ensuring toy safety, targeting all key actors in the supply chain. To facilitate the process of taking these recommendations forward at European level, the report also recommends establishing a multi-stakeholder forum, building on the work of the expert group, to discuss the practical implementation of the various proposals.

ANEC is of the opinion that it is crucial for national governments to give priority to market surveillance, meaning that sufficient resources should be allocated to the market surveillance authorities. Indeed, we believe that market enforcement is too important an issue to be left to the Member States through subsidiarity.

For further information please visit:
http://ec.europa.eu/consumers/citizen/my_safety/index_en.htm

Developments concerning the mandate to revise the European Standard for child resistant lighters

Tania Vandenberghe and Mike Hayes represented ANEC at a meeting convened by CEN and the Commission to hear the views of national standards bodies (NSBs) on the draft mandate to revise EN 13869:2000 Lighters – Child resistance for lighters – Safety requirements and test methods. The meeting was held in Brussels on 30 May 2008 and was attended by 13 NSBs, the European Commission, CEN and ANEC. During the discussions, ANEC expressed opposition to the draft mandate.

The first reason is that the mandate contains a point to investigate and establish replacements for the child panel test with so-called technical parameters (e.g. defined forces to operate mechanisms, etc). The second reason is the proposal to revise the definition of a lighter, which arises from the short-term Decisions that have required CR lighters to become mandatory in Member States. ANEC’s concern is that the definition could considerably expand the number of lighters that would have to be child-resistant. These arguments were supported by a number of other delegations.
Of the CEN members attending, eight, as well as ANEC, indicated being against the acceptance of the mandate, 4 were in favour and 1 abstained (due to impossibility of finding national consensus). At the end of the meeting it was clear, both for CEN members and for the Commission, that there is a high probability of non-acceptance of the mandate by CEN.

On 12 June, the European Commission’s 98/34 Committee discussed the draft mandate and accepted it. Following this decision, the mandate will be sent to CEN.

European Child Safety Alliance meets in Iceland

ANEC attended the Seminar and the Steering Group meeting of the European Child Safety Alliance (ECSA) which took place in Reykjavik on 5-6 June 2008.

The Seminar opened its meeting by presenting a five-year traffic safety programme in Iceland, which concentrates on a campaign against the abuse of alcohol, promotes the wearing of seatbelts and aims to improve road infrastructure and road safety education for children. During the Seminar, the following presentations were made concerning the child road traffic safety: an overview of mortality and national policies addressing child restraint systems in Europe, the child restraint systems usage in Iceland, the use and misuse of child restraint systems in Portugal, and injuries involving children in cars in Iceland.

The Minister of Health in Iceland opened the discussions on child safety in the home, after which several presentations followed: an overview of mortality and national policies addressing home safety in Europe, taking control of tap water temperature in Iceland, injury prevention training for professionals in Austria, parental and health professional injury prevention training in Iceland.

The most important items at the Steering Group meeting were the updates on home safety and water safety. ANEC gave an update on the revision of the Toy Safety Directive and said that the next big step is a Public Hearing in the European Parliament to consider the Report from the Rapporteur. It was agreed that ECSA would send a letter to the Rapporteur and IMCO members asking them to support the ANEC/BEUC key concerns, and that country organisations could co-sign the letter.

ANEC addresses European Commission’s Committee under the General Product Safety Directive on the issue of baby walkers

At the Commission’s GPSD Committee which was held on 20 June, ANEC gave a presentation on baby walkers in order to convince Member States that the standard for baby walkers, EN 1273:2005, should become a harmonised standard. Although most Member States already gave their support in June 2007 to publish the references of the standard in the Official Journal, some discussion arose at the February 2008 meeting as to whether a ban would be the better option. ANEC said it would support a ban, but as such a decision would not be for tomorrow, we added that, for as long as the products are on the market, they should be properly standardised. As none of the Member States had a fundamental objection against referencing the standard in the OJ, the Commission proposed to plan a vote on the issue later this year.

Child Safety & Design for All

ANEC attends kick-off meeting on barrier-free playground equipment

ANEC representatives Helena Menezes and Meg Galley attended the kick-off meeting of CEN TC 136 SC 1 WG 12 held in Berlin on 16 May 2008.

The meeting reviewed the scope of WG 12, which is to investigate available standards and expert guidance on the subject of inclusive, barrier-free play and to make recommendations to TC 136 SC 1 on standards, if any, that need to be developed. These may be new standards, revisions/amendments of existing standards or guidance documents. There was strong opposition to a German proposal to have a separate part of EN 1176 on “barrier free” playgrounds. The fear was that manufacturers/installers might not buy a separate part of the standard, thinking it did not apply to them.

Members also expressed concern that the Scope of SC 1 was confined to unsupervised playground equipment, whereas, for a playground to be accessible for all children, there are wider issues such as parking spaces, accessible and suitable toilet/changing facilities and rest areas.

Most of the information gathered before the meeting was guidance documents on inclusive playgrounds: only 2 standards were found. It was agreed to review the DIN standard and to compare it with the different parts of EN 1176 to see if there is anything restricting design for all.

The group also had a discussion on terminology (ANEC supported using “design for all” when discussing terminology) and on supervision. Although EN 1176 is for unsupervised play areas (not staffed), the scope clearly says that it is developed with “full recognition of the need for supervision of young children and of less able or less competent children.”

It was agreed that there is need to issue a recommendation for SC 1 on the way to proceed in order to ensure that EN 1176 is not prohibiting inclusive design, and that there are no conflicts or gaps in safety requirements when using inclusive design.

The group will meet again before the next SC 1 meeting in order to prepare the recommendation.

Design for All

ANEC signs MoU with the European Disability Forum (EDF)

According to the new ANEC Strategy 2008-2013, ANEC needs to reinforce its relationships with identified Partner Organisations in order to improve the co-ordination of common activities.

Building on the long-standing collaboration between the ANEC Design for All WG and the EDF, the EDF Executive Committee and ANEC Steering Committee agreed on a set of mutual rights and obligations intended to strengthen the existing collaboration.

ANEC and EDF have decided to join forces in order to achieve a high level of safety and accessibility for consumers of all ages and abilities. The MoU serves as the framework for this collaboration. ANEC and EDF resolve to co-ordinate their collaboration in the policy activities related to standardisation, with a particular view to the adoption of an European anti-discrimination directive and entry into force of the UN Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities.

The Memorandum was signed by EDF Director, Carlotta Besozzi, and ANEC Secretary General Stephen Russell on 18 June 2008.

CEN approves Mandate M/420 on access to the built environment

Mandate M/420 - European accessibility requirements for public procurement in the built environment (Phase 1) was agreed by the 36th BT/TCMG meeting on 12 June 2008 in Brussels, after intensive lobbying by ANEC members.

The aim of the Mandate is to make an inventory and to assess the feasibility of European and international accessibility standards for the built environment.

According to the results of this assessment, the Standardisation Bodies are asked to elaborate common functional accessibility requirements to be used as either technical specifications or as criteria for awarding public contracts.

The mandate was initially opposed by one CEN member because it could be in contradiction with mandatory national requirements. However, it is our understanding that the public procurement directive does not preclude the possibility of Member States to keep their mandatory national requirements. This was the message that ANEC voiced out at the BT/TCMG meeting.
CEN also decided to create a group (BT WG 207 ‘Accessibility in built environment’) to carry out the work and allocated its convenorship to AENOR, the Spanish National Standards Body.

Design for All & Environment

ANEC participates in CEN TC 293 WG 10 - Revision of EN 12182 ‘Technical aids for disabled persons – General requirements and test methods’

ANEC representative Rodolfo Cattani attended the CEN TC 293 WG 10 meeting dedicated to the revision of EN 12182:1999 Assistive Products for Persons with Disability – General Requirements and Test Methods, following the failure to meet with stipulated timeframes in 2007. This proposed standard on general requirements and test methods, for products for persons with disability, refers to products intended by the manufacturer to be medical devices for the purpose of directive 93/42/EC concerning medical devices. The ANEC representative made some interventions on the Terms and definitions and Information to the user.

In 2005, ANEC had commented on the review of this standard and asked for the incorporation of certain specific environmental and health aspects in the revision of the standard, which is now being done in CEN TC 293 WG 10.

During this April meeting, ANEC member Dr Franz Fiala gave a presentation on chemical requirements for EN 12182, presenting the results of a study carried out by CREM, for the ON Consumer Council. The study aimed to review selected European draft standards to identify relevant human health or environmental concerns. At the meeting ANEC requested CEN TC 293 WG 10 to create a special Task Group to deal with the environmental/chemical aspects of the revision.

A new draft of the standard will be presented and discussed during the next meeting to be held in September 2008.

Domestic Appliances & Design for All

ANEC attends meeting of CENELEC TC 61 WG 4 on the ‘exclusion clause’

ANEC representatives Chris Evans and Karin Both attended the meeting of CENELEC TC 61 WG4 which was held in Stockholm on 17 June 2008. Temperature measurement was discussed further, as there were some doubts on how to measure the temperatures in the curve of CENELEC Guide 29 on surface temperatures. Based on some clarifications given by ANEC and by German members that contacted one of the experts who developed the theoretical background and the reference values in the tables of Guide 29, it was agreed that the methods are comparable. There was also a long discussion on a proposal from CECED on surface temperatures. WG4 agreed to take a temperature that is one degree lower than the upper curve in Guide 29. Following the work done so far by WG4 on cooktop fires, some members did tests which showed that the performance might be influenced. The issue will be discussed further at the next meeting, which will be held in Copenhagen from 8 to 12 September 2008.

Domestic Appliances

ANEC publishes proposal on installation and maintenance of gas appliances

At the end of April, ANEC presented its proposal on the installation and maintenance of gas appliances at a meeting with the European Commission, DG Enterprise. In its proposal, ANEC points to the fact that an appliance which is manufactured to the safest and most efficient of standards may become either unsafe or inefficient in operation, or both to varying degrees, because of poor, faulty or negligent installation. In certain Member States, mandatory provisions define in particular the safety level required of appliances burning gaseous fuels by specifying design, operating characteristics and inspection and installation procedures. These mandatory provisions do not necessarily lead to different safety levels from one Member State to another, but do, by their disparity, hinder trade within the Community. In order to avoid multiple inspections, which are in effect barriers to the free movement of appliances burning gaseous fuels, ANEC is of the opinion that arrangements should be made for the mutual recognition of installation regulations by the Member States. To facilitate mutual recognition of installation and servicing regulations, harmonised Community procedures should be set up and the criteria for appointing the bodies responsible for carrying out these procedures should be harmonised. The proposal touches upon the safety of gas installations; registration and certification of installers; requirements to be placed upon installers; the training of installers; servicing of gas appliances; and duties on registration authorities.

As the Gas Appliances Directive does not take into account the installation and maintenance of the appliances, ANEC submitted the proposal to the Commission as a suggestion for the revision of the Gas Appliances Directive.

The full position paper can be found at http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-DOMAP-2007-G-054final.pdf

CENELEC and IEC meetings on safety of electrical household appliances

Joint ANEC-CI representative, Javier Pablo Garcia Fernandez, participated in the meeting of IEC TC 61 ‘Safety of electrical household appliances’ held in Tokyo on 26-30 May 2008.

The meeting discussed accessible surfaces in Part 1 of ISO EN 13732. MT 4 of IEC TC 61 came up with a new proposal, with a lower touch time, and taking the upper curve of the figure rounding up to the nearest 5 degrees (e.g. the value of 60K for glass and ceramic was replaced by 65K). Even though ANEC-CI disagreed with the proposal, it was accepted by most of the countries represented.

When discussing the proposal of MT4, in relation to temperature limits for appliances covered by Parts 2-6 ‘cooking ranges, ovens and similar appliances’, Germany said that measurements with thermesthesiometer and thermocouples led to different results. Many comments were received concerning the methodology in ISO 13732-1, and therefore it was agreed that MT 4 would further consider the issue and would consult the experts who produced the ISO standard in order to get clarification.

Concerning the proposal from CENELEC with temperature limits for appliances covered by Parts 2-9 on grills, toasters and similar portable cooking appliances, it was agreed to postpone the decision, pending the results of a round-robin test.

ANEC and CI sent a letter supporting CENELEC Guide 29 on surface temperatures to be transferred into an IEC Guide. IEC TC 61 MT 4 commented that nowadays the 60335 standards include the possible risk when developing the safety requirements for the appliances in question; and that there is no need for this guide anymore, as far as household appliances are concerned. MT 4 believes that it would be better, as a last resort, to publish the document as an ISO/IEC guide.

The TC was informed about an accident that happened in Taiwan with a vertical axis impeller type washing machine, where a child was found to have drowned. As such washing machines do not have an automatic door-lock; it would therefore be necessary to prepare a proposal to include this safety device in such appliances.

The next meeting will be held in Sao-Paulo on 17-21 November 2008.

CENELEC TC 61 meeting

ANEC Programme Manager Tania Vandenberghe attended the CENELEC TC 61 meeting held in Stockholm in the third week of June 2008.

The meeting was informed that CEN TC 261 (SC 5 WG 26) will start work on risk of suffocation from plastic bags. Although the request to start work on this issue arose from the ongoing work in CLC TC 61 WG 4, TC 61 didn’t find it necessary to send a TC 61 representative to this WG. ANEC will send a representative to follow the work and will keep TC 61 informed of the progress.

The Chairman reported on activities in WG 4 on the exclusion clause (see also above under Domestic Appliances & Design for All) and said the Commission at the April meeting of the LVD-WP (Low Voltage Directive Working Party) had congratulated TC 61 on the work related to the exclusion clause. ANEC reported about an incident in the US where a child entered a toy-vending machine. TC members said that toy-vending machines fall under the standard EN 60335-2-82 “Amusement machines”.


The Chairman advised ANEC to keep this issue in mind for the work within WG4, as it needs to be addressed there.

Recently, some discussions have arisen on interpretation of the standard EN 60335-1 for electrical household appliances concerning so-called “child appealing” or “toy like” appliances. As a result, a proposal from industry was discussed. ANEC said this is an important issue and welcomed the fact that it was put on the table because a solution needs to be found in order to clarify what is child appealing and what is not. As a first reaction, ANEC said it felt uncomfortable with the term “toy-like” product, as suggested by industry. Decorated appliances can be as child appealing as “toy like” appliances. ANEC added there are other products, apart from electrical appliances, that are child appealing (e.g. candles looking like fruit, shampoo bottles in the shape of Donald Duck), and it is a question of finding a general definition of what is “child appealing”.

Two amendments to the standard for UV appliances (sun beds) were received a positive vote. These amendments were created after a request from the Commission and a Scientific Opinion.

A draft for a standard on beauty care electric equipment is almost ready to be submitted for enquiry. ANEC reminded the meeting that, when the document is ready to be submitted to CENELEC, TC 61 must report to the Technical Board on whether further work needs to be done to address the in-service use of such equipment.

The next meeting will be held in December 2008 in the United Kingdom.

Environment & Domestic Appliances

ANEC participates in final Commission meeting on layout of EU Energy Label

ANEC took part in the final meeting of the Commission Working Group on the future layout of the EU Energy Label, held on 2 June 2008 in Brussels. The aim of this meeting was to discuss further the pros and cons of the existing A-G Energy Label layout (or a variation of it) and the industry proposal for a numerical scale label (e.g. 1-7).

Both Denmark and the UK gave presentations supporting the retention of the A-G scheme, and several countries stressed the main objective of the framework Directive 92/75/EEC is to inform the consumer and enable them to buy on an informed basis.

Other issues discussed were how the particular shortcomings of the proposed label options could be tackled, with, for example, a proposal to add a period of validity to the A-G label. ANEC and WWF stressed that the purpose of having a year or validity period on the label would be to reassure consumers that the label is up to date, and also to inform the market surveillance authorities. However, most countries did not see the added value of this to consumers.

No consensus could be reached in the group on which label would be better, and the Commission will now formulate a proposal for a new implementing measure to be adopted, most likely on televisions. The Commission will submit this proposal for vote in the Energy Labelling Regulatory Committee this autumn.

Environment

ANEC study offers alternatives to traditional environmental product declarations (cont.)

Current EPDs are an ideal marketing instrument due to their inherent shortcomings, such as presentation of mere datasets which do not allow consumers to identify products of environmental superiority, and which make it easy to ignore relevant human health and environmental impacts. The ANEC study, carried out by Force Technology (Denmark), under the supervision of Environment WG Chair Franz Fiala and Environment WG member Guido Hoff, shows alternatives to these industry-driven EPDs by adding consumer-relevant information and presenting the data in a new format.

The proposed new format displays life cycle indicators by normalising the environmental impacts of a given average product to the impacts caused by an average citizen. This information is shown using a graded, colour band scale similar to the EU Energy Label. Reference is also made to the criteria used in Type I eco-label schemes, where available, and a simple green-red colour code shows whether the criteria are fulfilled or not. In addition, colour-coded ranking systems for chemical content and indoor air emissions were developed. Finally, the study provides model declarations for several building products and energy-using products.

Based on this and previous ANEC studies and work, ANEC stresses that the identification of benchmarks and scales involves value choices which should not be left to the industry, and thus the Commission should ensure information requirements are defined at the political level, so ensuring a coordinated approach between the requirements of the Eco-design Directive (EuP) and the EU Energy Label and Eco-label schemes.

The study and annex are available at:
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2007-ENV-004final.pdf  
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2007-ENV-004final%20(annex).pdf

The ANEC statement is available at:
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2008-ENV-003final.pdf  

ANEC attends series of meetings on sustainability of construction products

ANEC representative Guido Hoff participated in meetings of CEN TC 350 ‘Sustainability of construction products’ and its subgroups on 15-17 April in Vienna, and on 10-11 June in Berlin. The main work of consumer interest is carried out in the Task Group ‘Framework’ and in WG3 on ‘Product level’.

After the rejection of the draft Technical Specification prTS 15643 "Sustainability of construction works – Framework for assessment of buildings" last year, the document was split into one general framework and three single documents on environmental, economic and social aspects of sustainability. At the April meeting it was identified as crucial that the methods used must be transparent, credible and systematic in order to achieve comparability. ANEC succeeded in changing this recommendation into an obligation. Furthermore, ANEC expressed concerns regarding the reduction of the social pillar of sustainability to health and comfort aspects, mainly with respect to the technical performance of the building construction. The aim of the June meeting was to clarify the role of the functional and technical performance of buildings with respect to sustainability aspects.

In WG3 ‘Product level’, the draft standard prEN 15804 "Sustainability of construction works - Environmental product declarations - Product category rules" was circulated for enquiry in April, with a deadline of 10 September 2008. At the April plenary meeting of CEN TC 350, ANEC stressed that the draft standard is not feasible for consumers nor for public procurers, and that major consumer needs have not been taken into account, such as benchmarks and comparability. ANEC will prepare comments on prEN 15804 in summer 2008. Another document of importance to consumers is that of ‘Communication formats’ which aims to address the content and layout for environmental product declarations (EPDs) in the business to business, as well as in the business to consumer context. At the June meeting of WG3 ANEC stressed the need for a condensed version of the business to business communication, but one which gives the essential messages in a comparable format. However, it is unlikely that the suggested EPD will meet consumer requirements and information needs, and ANEC is concerned that it may be used as a mere marketing instrument by the industry.

ANEC and BEUC position paper on consumer interests in eco-design

On 17 June 2008, ANEC and BEUC published a position paper which identifies, describes and analyses the core consumer requirements related to eco-design (of energy-using products), and shows how to improve future product policy. The paper argues that eco-design, with its focus on energy-efficiency only, is too narrow in scope and that it needs to take into account other important aspects of concern such as resource efficiency, the use of hazardous chemicals and waste disposal. Moreover, we see a need to better link existing information tools such as the Eco-label and the EU Energy Label to the eco-design process. We also argue in the paper that eco-design should be extended to non-energy-using products, e.g. clothing and furniture. The position paper was sent to Commissioners Piebalgs, Verheugen, Dimas, and Kuneva during the on-going inter-service consultation on the Sustainable Consumption and Production Action Plan. In particular, we asked the Commission to support the extension of eco-design to other consumer products, such as furniture, textiles or building materials, in the forthcoming Action Plan.

ANEC also attended a EuP Stakeholder Consultation Forum meeting on 28 May 2008 in which discussions concentrated on the consumer-relevant issues for the EuP Working Plan for 2009-2011, and verification procedures for market surveillance purposes. At the meeting ANEC asked for a concrete list of products to be included in the Working Plan, instead of mentioning only broad categories. Moreover, ANEC proposed to include outdoor heaters in the Working Plan, as these currently waste a considerable amount of energy.

The ANEC/BEUC position paper on eco-design is available at:
http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-PT-2008-EuP-009final.pdf

Information Society

ANEC study on “Consumer requirements for RFID standardisation” (cont.)

The purpose of this ANEC Information Society Working Group research project was to explore the potential of standardisation to overcome threats and to strengthen the opportunities of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) for consumers.

The study, which ran from April to December 2007, was carried out by Intertek Research and Performance Testing, UK, under the supervision of ICT Working Group Chair Kristina Unverricht. It analysed RFID applications which are considered as priority from the consumer point of view, such as electronic tags (e-tags) to replace code-bars on products. A review was also carried out on the work done by different consumer organisations.

The research showed that the majority of consumers, in all the countries, know very little about RFID. When looking specifically at the different European countries, the study found that many of the concerns surrounding RFID were similar in all the countries; such as privacy, security and transparency of deployment.

The study highlighted that standards are needed to make RFID deployment both secure and compatible with this legislation, but a first step is ensuring that the law is applied to RFID systems in a way that best defends the consumer interest.

ANEC intends to use the study results to continue to lobby for informed consent to be the central privacy issue that European policy must address, as in the case of the draft Commission Recommendation on RFID.

The report of the study is available at: http://www.anec.eu/attachments/ANEC-R&T-2008-ICT-002.pdf

ANEC position on electronic communications

ANEC released its comments on the revision of the EU electronic communications regulatory framework on 23 May 2008. This framework deals with the functioning of the internal market for telecommunications networks and services.

The revision of the five directives which constitute the electronic communications regulatory framework started in 2006 with the Commission consulting stakeholders. ANEC submitted several comments which focused on the use of standards in complementing legislation as a tool for consumer protection and promoting their interests.

It was with great pleasure that we read the Commission proposals published in November 2007 as several of our points were taken into account, namely to include terminals under the scope of the framework, improving transparency for consumers and comparative tariffs and strengthening of the right to access for consumers with disabilities.

The legislative package is currently being discussed under co-decision procedure by the IMCO (Internal Market and Consumer Protection), ITRE (Industry, Research and Energy) and LIBE (Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs) Committees of the European Parliament and the Telecoms Working groups of the Council.

ANEC decided to resubmit to the Parliament and Council some previous comments and a new suggestion to set up a mechanism to deal with eAccessibility issues, complemented by a stakeholder review process. The framework could be underpinned by formal standardisation. This follows up from the joint ANEC/EDF position on eAccessibility of 2007.
The Parliament and the Council aims at a strong comprise in first reading, and even adopt the legislative package before the European elections next year.

ANEC attends IEC TC 108 meeting on safety of audiovideo equipment

An IEC TC 108 meeting was held in Brussels from May 26 to 30 and was attended by ANEC representative Helmut Hintz. The subjects under discussion at this meeting included the IEC 62368 standards Audio/Video, Information and Communication Technology Equipment – Safety – Requirements, which failed to be approved this Spring and the IEC ACOS request on CENELEC Guide 29 to become an IEC Guide Temperatures of hot surfaces likely to be touched; Guidance document for Technical Committees and manufacturers”.

ANEC expressed support for the latter item as we wrote a letter to IEC ACOS to request the transposition of Guide 29 at the international level.

The discussion which was of most concern to consumers was the discussion on limitation of excessive sound pressure in certain portable sound players such as MP3 players as they are frequently used by children. ANEC commented on IEC 108/276/CDV safety standard for IT and Audio/Video equipment by saying that the noise level of 118dBA – to 125dBA for long term exposure (>0,5s) is extremely high and at the barrier of pain. An acoustic noise with such high level (118 dBA – 125dBA) can result in hearing damage and even hearing loss. The requirements of a safety standard should avoid such injury.

Much support was voiced for limitation to about 100dBA for portable sound systems, however arguments have come up that this limitation may be too restrictive when listening to classical music, and when using such equipment in a noisy environment, so no decision was taken to set limits. However, an ad hoc group will work on a DC (document for comments) with a proposal for sound pressure limits for portable sound systems by July 2008.

It was also agreed that the equipment instructions should require a general warning along with a warning label on the product.

The ANEC representative intervened during this discussion in order to point out that the users of portable sound systems are often children. Therefore in order to protect the users of portable sound systems from hearing damage, a technical limitation of the sound pressure is necessary, and as many of the users are children, a warning alone is not sufficient.

Information Society & Design for All

ANEC statement on consumer expectations related to Mandate M/376

ANEC Programme Manager Chiara Giovannini participated in the closing panel of the Open conference on the Results from Phase 1 of Standards Mandate M/376 on accessible ICT in Europe, which took place in Brussels on the 3 - 4 June 2008.

ANEC said that consumers expect that the products they find in the shops to be accessible, whatever their age and abilities. Therefore, ANEC believes that standards need to be developed in order to realise the full potential of the legislative instruments which encourage a Design for All approach, such as the Public Procurement directives. Bearing in mind that the total public procurement in the EU (15) amounts to 16% of the European Union’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), it is evident that public procurement is beneficial for consumers as it will increase the market demand of accessible ICT products and services.

ANEC looks forward to the second phase of Mandate M/376 which should develop a complete list of European functional accessibility requirements for public procurement as technical specifications or award criteria in the tenders, or in support of conformity processes. It goes without saying that only then will it be possible for us to evaluate the impact of public procurement on the overall level of accessibility of ICT products and services on the European market.

The meeting, attended by public procurers and end users and industry, especially from the US, was chaired by ANEC representative and chair of DATSCG (Design for All and Assistive Technology Standardisation Group) Gill Whitney.

Wrapping up the meeting, the Commission said that the meeting had been a success and that they were willing to continue to support both phase one and phase two of the mandate.

Services

Comments resolution meeting of CEN TC 373 PC Real Estate Services

On 7-9 May 2008 Nina Klemola, ANEC Project Manager, participated in a meeting of CEN TC 373 PC Services of Real Estate Agents in Malaga, Spain. The aim of the meeting was to go through the comments on prEN 15733 ‘Requirements for the provision of services of real estate agents’, received during the public enquiry which finished in March 2008.

ANEC had submitted substantial comments on the draft, including comments on the scope of the standard, the information to be provided to a buyer/seller as a client and/or as a consumer, on the issue of conflict of interest, on monetary deposits, and on real estate agents’ qualifications. Although some of our comments were supported - it was agreed that the scope should apply to both business-to-business and business-to-consumer services, and that no property should be put on the market before a written client-agent agreement has been signed - several other points proved to be difficult to progress as no consensus could be found.

A particularly tricky issue turned out to be ANEC’s call for clear minimum requirements for the qualifications of agents. Although some countries supported ANEC’s proposals, it was agreed to defer the discussion until the next meeting. CEPI and CEI (professional organisations of real estate agents) also gave a statement at the meeting, noting that this draft standard should be seen as a first step only and that they would not set up a certification scheme based on this standard.

The next meeting will be held on 8-9 September 2008 in Vienna, with the issues of professional qualifications, the annex on e-commerce, and the code of ethics yet to be discussed.

ANEC attends meeting of CEN TC 375 PC Customer Contact Centres

ANEC representative Kristina Unverricht participated in the meeting of CEN TC 375 PC Customer Contact Centres on 17-18 April 2008 in Dublin. The meeting discussed the fifth Working Draft on service requirements for contact centres. The Working Draft now includes requirements for outbound services and for alternative communication channels.

The ANEC representative proposed new wording for an annex on contractor responsibilities as there is a need to harmonise the goals and responsibilities of the Customer Contact Centre with those of the contractor. This was supported, with minor changes, by the group.

The document will now go out for public enquiry and ANEC will prepare comments on the draft in due course. The comments resolution meeting will be in February 2009, and the final standard is expected to be published by the end of 2009.

ANEC participates in CEN TC 331 Postal Services meeting

Gretel Jones, ANEC representative to CEN TC 331 Postal Services, attended the TC plenary meeting on 23 May 2008 in Helsinki. The main issue of interest for consumers was the revision of EN 13724 ‘Apertures of private letter boxes and letter plates’. In order to revise the standard, it was agreed to reconstitute WG 5, in which ANEC will also take part. Particular concerns highlighted by some countries, and also stressed by ANEC, relate to the size of the letter box openings – whereas some countries would like to see a large size to enable items for blind persons to be accommodated, others would like the openings to be smaller for security reasons.

Furthermore, the Commission is in the process of drafting a new mandate for TC 331 – this was also discussed in the Committee on Standards and Regulations (98/34 Committee) meeting on 13 June.

ANEC becomes a liaison member in ISO TC 228 ‘Tourism and related services’

Considering the importance of tourism as a service sector, its cross-border nature, and the potential risks to the health and security of consumers across Europe and beyond, ANEC applied for liaison membership in ISO TC 228 ‘Tourism and related services’ earlier this year. The ANEC application was accepted in May 2008. ANEC is particularly interested in the proposals for work on adventure tourism services, and on the work envisaged in ISO TC 228 WG2 ‘Health tourism services’. ANEC is in the process of searching for an ANEC representative to this Committee (see below under ‘Vacancies’).

Services & Design for All

ANEC holds an ad hoc meeting on the accessibility of services

Experts from the ANEC Design for All and Services Working Groups met on 4 June for a joint meeting in Brussels. The aim of the meeting was to coordinate the activities of both groups.

The meeting began with a presentation by Nina Klemola, ANEC Project Manager, on ANEC’s position on service standardisation and common DfA/Services WG priorities. This discussion was followed by a presentation by Anne Ferguson, Services WG Chair, on the parallels between ISO/IEC Guide 76 ‘Development of service standards - Recommendations for addressing consumer issues’ and CEN/CLC Guide 6 ‘Guidelines for standards developers to address the needs of older persons and persons with disabilities’.

Chiara Giovannini, ANEC Programme Manager, then led a discussion on the relevant legal basis for accessible transport service standards. Maria Nyman presented EDF ideas on the quality of assistance to persons with disabilities and persons with reduced mobility at airports, as Regulation 1107/2006 will come into application on 26 July 2008 but the implementation is still in progress.

Finally, there was a brainstorming on identification of core consumer elements for accessible service standards, before the meeting came to a close.

Traffic Safety

Meetings of the GRSP Informal Group on child restraint systems (CRS)

The 3rd meeting of the Informal Group took place on 13 May 2008 in London. The focus of that meeting was on presentations and collecting of information on several items, such as anthropometric data for size based classification, data on test bench definition, test dummies and side impact. There were fewer discussions, but nevertheless, the ANEC/CI representative Ronald Vroman asked for clarification on several specific issues and challenged the car industry to improve CRS compatibility compared to R44.

The 4th meeting of the Informal Group took place on 18 June 2008 in Paris. The ANEC/CI representative Ronald Vroman presented the results of the ANEC research project "Accident study of the performance of restraints used by children aged three years and under". The project was well received and re-confirmed what was known to the technical community, i.e. the superior protection of children traveling, rearward facing, in cars until they are 4 years old. The ANEC/CI representative emphasised that the work on the new standard, including a new system of classification, should apply this knowledge. He reiterated that the aim should not be to develop a standard that conveniently fits existing products and their classification, but that the ultimate goal should be the safety of children.

Protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users

Each year 8000 pedestrians and cyclists are killed and 300000 injured across the EU. The European Parliament plenary adopted, at first reading, on 18 June 2008, the European Commission proposal for a Regulation, which lays down requirements for the construction and functioning of vehicles and frontal protection systems in order to reduce the number and severity of injuries to pedestrians and other vulnerable road users who are hit by the fronts of those vehicles. The initiative is also intended to avoid such collisions. This regulation repeals the current Directive on the protection of pedestrians and other vulnerable road users (Directive2003/102/EC), the Directive relating to the use of frontal protection systems on motor vehicles (Directive 2005/66/EC) and related national legislation in all Member States. The proposal will now be discussed by the Council of Ministers.

ANEC attends the meeting of ISO TC 22 SC 12 WG 1 ‘Child restraint systems in road vehicles’

ANEC Representative Henry Görlitz, attended the meeting of ISO TC 22 SC 12 WG 1 ‘Child restraint systems in road vehicles’ in London on 14-16 May 2008. Of particular interest was a new side impact method proposed by Takata, Japan. This method uses a double sled system and has been applied in a slightly modified way by NHTSA, USA. There was frustration about the long discussed ISO side impact procedure, which is going to be a technical standard, though Japan (Takata) had voted against.
The ANEC Representative expressed again concerns on the ISO side impact test method and highlighted the need for a comparison between the ISO and the proposed Takata method, which will hopefully take place at the next meeting in Texas on 27-30 October 2008.

ANEC observer at CEN TC 333 ‘Cycles’ plenary meeting

Steve Mestdagh took part as an ANEC observer in the CEN TC 333 ‘Cycles’ meeting on 19 May in Brussels. During the TC plenary meeting the reports from the various WGs were presented. Working Group 1 ‘Cycles for common use and bicycle trailers’ is now drafting WI00333011 ‘Cycles - Bicycles trailers - safety requirements and test methods’ and should be circulated for CEN enquiry as prEN by end 2008. This issue is of particular relevance to the ANEC ad hoc group on bicycles.

A reference to the revision of Toy Safety Directive was made when discussing bicycles with a saddle height 435 - 635 mm. These are not toys and should be tested according to EN 14765 ‘Bicycles for young children - Safety requirements and test methods’. Information was then given on US technical documents on bicycles and on applicable safety standards in Japan. The next TC 333 plenary meeting will take place on 18 November 2008.

Other Issues

112 Citizens’ Event

On 3 June, the Commission held an event dedicated to the single European emergency number, 112. The event promoted the implementation of the 112 number, and was the opening of an exhibition dedicated to 112. ANEC considers that 112 should be accessible to all European citizens and that real-time text access to telecommunication services is particularly important to allow people with hearing impairments to access emergency 112 services. We also call on the Commission to mandate standards to be used by operators and service providers in order to implement these accessibility requirements.

News from other Organisations

Injury Prevention Conference, Cape Town, 31 August – 3 September 2008

The Child Accident Prevention Foundation of Southern Africa will host the founding Conference of the International Society for Violence and Injury Prevention (ISVIP) in Cape Town from the 31st August to the 3rd September 2008.

The aim of this conference is to bring together those who are concerned with making the world a safer place for children and are prepared to make a difference. It will take the view that violence and Injury prevention can only be achieved by collaborative involvement and effort of all players: society, policy makers, NGOs and scientists.

Website: http://www.uct-cmc.co.za/Conferences/2008/ISVIP  

Vacancies

Consumer representative in the field of tourism services

ANEC is looking for a volunteer with proven experience in the field of Tourism Services to represent us on a voluntary basis.

The safety, quality and accessibility of tourism services and related services have been identified as an area of great importance to European consumers due to their cross-border nature and the potential risks involved, related to the health, well-being and security of consumers. International Standards can play a key role in ensuring and promoting consumer protection.

Detailed information on the role of the representative, as well as the profile sought, has been circulated within the ANEC membership, and is also available at www.anec.eu. The deadline for applications is 25 July 2008.

Miscellaneous

Meetings with ANEC representation

Standards Out for Public Enquiry

Standards Out for Formal Vote

Published Standards

Latest ANEC Comments

Further Information

For comments, or to write an article for the ANEC Newsletter, please contact:
Orla Kelly (orla.kelly@anec.eu)