Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stedman-Scott on 5 August 2019 (HL17390), whether they implemented the EU’s occupational exposure limit value for Formaldehyde of 0.3ppm (parts per million); and if not, what is the limit on exposure in the UK.

Following the UK’s exit from the EU, and the end of the Transition Period (TP), the UK is no longer involved in the EU limit-setting regime.

The EU’s revised binding occupational exposure limit for Formaldehyde had an implementation date of 11 July 2021, with an extended transition period to 11 July 2024 for the healthcare, funeral, and embalming sector in the UK.

As the date of implementation falls after the end of the Transition Period, there is no legal obligation for the UK to align with the revised EU limits, and this includes the revised limit for Formaldehyde. The current Great Britain (GB) Workplace Exposure Limit for Formaldehyde remains 2ppm, which is the previously agreed limit. However, the Health and Safety Executive is currently considering a long-term delivery model for setting workplace exposure limits in GB ensuring any limits introduced will be achievable, feasible and protective of health.

The Health and Safety Executive for Northern Ireland (HSENI) is responsible for developing a system for Northern Ireland.

There is a robust and well-established regulatory framework in place in GB to protect workers from health risks associated with exposure to hazardous substances in the workplace through the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH). Under COSHH, exposure to carcinogens, (as well as mutagens and asthmagens) should be reduced to as low as is reasonably practicable.