The European directive on toy safety (2009/48/EC) must, in future, better protect children, especially from chemicals, regardless of where they are manufactured, stressed the European Parliament on Wednesday 16 February.
An own-initiative resolution on the implementation of this directive, adopted by an overwhelming majority (688 votes in favour, 6 against, 1 abstention), is a recommendation for the future revision of this directive.
MEPs are calling on the European Commission and Member States to strengthen measures to ensure that all toys placed on the EU market comply with the directive (see EUROPE 12851/9).
In line with their rapporteur, Brando Benifei (S&D, Italy), they stress that the Commission must ensure that endocrine disruptors are banned in toys as soon as they are identified. It is also up to the institution to decide whether the current distinction between toys for children under 36 months and those for older children should be abolished, say MEPs.
In their view, the future revision of the directive should allow for the rapid adaptation of limit values for hazardous chemical substances, if necessary, avoiding having different values set at national level.
Parliament is calling on Member States to coordinate their market surveillance activities to detect dangerous toys more effectively, and on the Commission to explore the possibilities of electronic labelling and artificial intelligence for this purpose.
It reiterates that online marketplaces should be required to take more responsibility for ensuring the safety and compliance of toys sold on their platforms.
MEPs are encouraging producers to build safety and security mechanisms into the design of their toys to protect children from the risks of connected objects and are asking the Commission to propose rules.
The resolution also recommends that the Commission assess whether toys’ labels could contain information on their durability and reparability. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)