Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, when his Department plans to publish the findings of the investigation into the fridge identified as the seat of the fire at Grenfell Tower.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
The Department’s product safety investigation into Hotpoint model FF175 is ongoing and results will be published as soon as possible.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, whether the funding the Office for Product Safety and Standards has been allocated from existing Departmental budgets; and whether it represents an increase in spending on product safety.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
New funding for the Office for Product Safety and Standards has been allocated from within existing Departmental budgets to increase spending on product safety. When the Office is fully operational its budget will include an additional £12m per year for new product safety activities, as announced in the Government’s response to the Working Group on Product Recalls and Safety. The budget for the Office for its first full year of operation in 2018/19 is expected to be around £25m in total which includes around £9m additional funding for product safety.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many staff are planned to work within the Office for Product Safety and Standards; and what proportion of those staff will be (a) newly recruited and (b) transferred from within his Department.
Answered by Andrew Griffiths
When fully staffed the Office for Product Safety and Standards will employ around 290 people. This includes approximately 180 existing staff covering pre-existing functions and up to 110 new posts specifically for product safety. The new posts will enable the Office to significantly increase national capacity in scientific, technical, enforcement and other product safety functions. Recruitment to those posts has already begun and positions are being filled by a mix of internal and external recruitment to ensure the Office has the specialist expertise it needs.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what fee structures are published by primary trading standards authorities for services to appliance manufacturers.
Answered by Margot James
Local Authorities are required to publish clear and transparent information explaining any charges under the primary authority scheme, and the basis on which they are calculated. They can recover only those costs reasonably incurred in providing the service and they must have regard to the guidance issued by HM Treasury in “Managing Public Money” in calculating these costs.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what progress has been made by the Steering Group created as a result of the Government's response to the independent review by Lynn Faulds Wood, UK consumer product recall, published 18 February 2016.
Answered by Margot James
In October 2016 the Steering Group was replaced by a new Working Group on Product Recalls and Safety with a permanent Chair, wider representation, and a broader remit. It was also asked to report to a much tighter timeframe than the Steering Group it replaced.
I received the Working Group’s initial recommendations to further improve the safety of white goods and the recall system in December 2016 and work started immediately to take these forward. In June this year, I asked the Working Group to review their report in light of the Grenfell Tower fire and their final report was published on 19th July.
Significant progress has already been made by the Working Group to develop a code of practice on corrective action and product recalls together with the British Standards Institution (BSI), and a public consultation will be published in the autumn. The Report also sets out the further work that is underway to strengthen the product safety framework including promoting the registration of appliances and better understanding consumer responses to safety information and recall communications.
Asked by: Andy Slaughter (Labour - Hammersmith and Chiswick)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of free electrical appliance tests in tower blocks in England; and if he will make a statement.
Answered by Margot James
The UK has one of the highest sets of product safety requirements in the EU, which requires goods to meet strict safety rules before they are put into use.
I have asked the Working Group on Product Recalls and Safety to consider the merits of making safety check on white goods used in tower blocks and will liaise with the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Home Office over their recommendations.