Over the summer SBS has started engaging with the upcoming revision of the New Legislative Framework (NLF), replying to a call for evidence launched by the European Commission.
First adopted in 2008, the New Legislative Framework (NLF) is a package of EU measures to improve the internal market for goods and strengthen the conditions for placing a wide range of products on the EU market. The aim is to upgrade market surveillance and boost the quality of conformity assessments. The NLF comprises:
· Regulation (EC) 765/2008 setting out the requirements for accreditation and the market surveillance of products;
· Decision 768/2008 on a common framework for the marketing of products;
· Regulation (EU) 2019/1020 on market surveillance and compliance of products.
European standards are key to the NLF. The NLF Regulations and Directives set out essential requirements that products must meet to ensure safety, health, and environmental protection. Harmonised standards (hENs) cited in the Official Journal of the European Union provide the technical specifications that manufacturers can follow to ensure their products meet these essential requirements. When manufacturers use hENs, the products benefit from a presumption of conformity with the applicable legislative requirements.