EU consumer chief praises work of parliament

EU consumer protection chief Maglena Kuneva has praised the work of MEPs for helping with the success of the RAPEX rapid alert system.

Kuneva in particular praised the work of parliament’s internal market committee, chaired by UK deputy Arlene McCarthy.

“The parliament is a very strong institution, and I am delighted to have worked with an excellent committee of dedicated, devoted MEPs,” Kuneva told this website on Thursday.

“Working with the parliament is the perfect match, and I welcome
this influence on our policy,” she added.

Kuneva said that 2007 had been a “significant year” for the RAPEX system (the rapid alert system for dangerous consumer goods), with the number of dangerous products taken off the market increasing by 53%.

China, she said, was the biggest source of dangerous goods.

Kuneva said that she will visit China in June to observe progress and was optimistic that the Chinese authorities were keen to embrace product safety in order to protect the ‘made in China’ brand.

Kuneva is keen for the Chinese authorities to sign an updated memorandum of understanding with the EU later this year.

Despite an improvement, Kuneva stressed that it was still important to keep improving the alert system.

“There is no room for complacency. The world for consumers is becoming more sophisticated and more complicated. There is still work to be done,” she said at a press conference.

The commissioner is also due to host the first tri-lateral summit on product safety, with China and the US, in Brussels in November.

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