UK HSE Chemicals Legislative Reform Consultation Report

By Susana Planas Mungavin, senior regulatory affairs specialist, Supply Chain Team, UL Solutions

In Feb. 2026, the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) released a report addressing the legislative measures proposed to amend the UK chemicals legislative framework, as well as the responses received from the consultation on UK chemicals regulatory reform.

The consultation ran from June 23, 2025 to Aug. 18, 2025 and received over 280 responses from businesses, trade bodies, NGOs and members of the public. The reform proposes legislative measures to be adopted to reduce the administrative burden on public authorities and industry, resulting from the legal requirements relating to chemicals management. The reform also aims to introduce legislative measures to protect the UK Internal Market affecting the chemicals sector without compromising health and environmental standards.

The UK chemicals regulatory framework regulates the lifecycle of chemicals, including manufacture, storage, supply, distribution, use, import, export and disposal of chemicals, as well as the protection of people and places exposed to chemicals.

The HSE Chemicals Legislative Reform Consultation report provides a summary of the responses received, relating to the legislative measures proposed to be adopted.

The measures are aimed at improving the current chemicals management regulatory frameworks applicable in Great Britain (GB), following Brexit.

Further secondary legislation is deemed necessary to improve the current regulatory framework, established by the GB Biocidal Product Regulation, GB Classification, Labelling and Packaging Regulation and GB Prior Informed Consent Regulation.

Each of these Regulations were approved post Brexit to retain the European Union Chemical Regulations. They include European Regulation No. 528/2012 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 22 May 2012 concerning the market availability and use of biocidal products, European Regulation (EC) No. 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures and European Regulation (EU) 649/2012 concerning the export and import of hazardous chemicals.

More specifically, the report addresses these proposed measures concerning the following regulations applicable to Great Britain (GB):

GB Biocidal Product Regulation (GB BPR)

Firstly, the proposal text recognises EU biocidal active substance approvals and product authorisations. This proposal was brought forward due to existing backlog of over 330 active substances and product type evaluations that were granted under the EU regulatory framework and have not been evaluated under the UK regulatory regime post-Brexit. Consequently, this resulted in high costs for industry, with companies facing up to GBP 160,000 per active substance approval or an estimated GBP 25,000 for biocidal product authorisation evaluations.

Secondly, the proposal includes phasing out the renewal process of expiry dates for active substance approvals and replacing this with a risk assessment approach in order to speed up the process and focus on high-risk substances. Active substances renewal dates expiring from Jan. 2027 will be put on hold before renewal until further primary legislation is approved.

Thirdly, GB BPR decisions could consider standards from foreign jurisdictions that can be assessed as being at least as high as GB standards. For this point, the HSE considers the EU jurisdiction as the one from which GB would recognise approvals. This would harmonise standards across the UK and minimise potential deviations from the GB system requirements to those applicable in Northern Ireland.

Labelling and Packaging Regulation (GB CLP)

The four legislative proposals to GB CLP aim to protect the UK Internal Market and provide a consistent regime across Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Among the proposals are:

Firstly, the consolidation of Article 37 and Article 37A of GB CLP into a single procedure for GB mandatory classifications and the discontinuation of the link requiring the HSE to consider all Committee for Risk Assessment (RAC) opinions published by the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA).

Secondly, to remove the current GB notification database, which is proving too burdensome.

Thirdly, relating to the GB mandatory classification and labelling requirements (GB MCL), HSE is proposing to relocate explanatory notes relating to entries in the GB MCL List from Part 1 of Annex VI to the Regulation to the actual HSE’s website page dedicated to the GB MCL. This proposal would enable the Agency to adopt future revisions pertaining to the GB MCL entries without having to adopt a Statutory Instrument, as currently required, delaying decisions by up to a year, following technical reports or opinions.

HSE will also be looking into how to incorporate the six EU CLP hazard classes, yet to be implemented into GB CLP, featuring the following hazard classes that are exclusive to EU CLP: endocrine disruption for human health and the environment; persistent, bioaccumulative, toxic; very persistent, very bioaccumulative; persistent, mobile, toxic; and very persistent, very mobile.

Fourthly, to provide for general powers for future amendments to GB CLP to be adopted under legislative instruments, to align GB CLP MCL with all EU classifications, if doing so is necessary or the policy to be adopted in each case.

GB Prior Informed Consent Regulation (GB PIC)

HSE intends to introduce legislative changes to meet the Rotterdam Convention requirements.  It contemplates three proposals, including:

Firstly, to no longer require the display of a Special Reference Identification Number for the export of small quantities of chemicals being exported for research or analysis in quantities unlikely to affect human health or the environment.

Secondly, to amend the “waiver” process whereby the Designated National Authority can waive for one year the requirement for the explicit consent of the importing country before export.

Thirdly, to introduce powers to streamline future amendments and updates to GB PIC and its supporting regulations to keep up with international obligations derived from the Rotterdam Convention.

References

HSE Chemicals Legislative Reform Consultation Response

GB Biocidal Product Regulation (BPR)

GB Classification, Labelling and Packaging Regulation (CLP)

GB Mandatory classification and labelling list (GB MCL List)

GB Prior Informed Consent (PIC)