Negotiators from the European Parliament, the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU and the European Commission will begin to work out the details of the proposed General Product Safety Regulation for the digital age (GPSR) when they meet for the second round of inter-institutional negotiations on Tuesday 8 November (see EUROPE 13040/5).
This legislation was presented by the Commission in June 2021 with a view to ensuring a high level of consumer protection at a time when online markets and the development of new technologies are posing new challenges requiring the replacement of the now inadequate Directive 2001/95/EC (see EUROPE 12752/2).
The positions of the Parliament - on the basis of the report by Dita Charanzová (Renew Europe, Czech) (see EUROPE 12973/12) - and the EU Council (see EUROPE 12997/9) are not far apart on this text. Like the Commission, the European Parliament and EU Council want only safe products to be made available on the internal market, without restricting the supply of products, but the modalities need to be agreed.
The obligations of operators in the event of an accident, the person responsible, market surveillance, recalls in the event of the presence of products presenting a serious risk and consumer recourse were among the subjects discussed by the Member States’ ambassadors to the EU on Friday 4 November in preparation for this second trilogue.
It is already expected that a third trilogue will be necessary. (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)