CHEM Trust is a charity working at the UK, EU and International level.
It’s worth noting that many aspects of chemical regulation within the UK are currently controlled at EU level, with the UK government and MEPs participating in decisions. This means that CHEM Trust’s work at EU level has a direct impact on the UK. We are also doing a lot of work on the potential impact of Brexit on UK chemical protections.
Here is a selection of the work we do within the UK; you can get the latest news on our UK work by looking at all the blogs posts tagged with ‘UK’.
Participating in the UK Government’s Chemicals Stakeholder Forum
The UK Chemicals Stakeholder Forum (UKCSF) advises the UK government on managing risks to the environment and to human health via the environment that may result from the production, distribution and use of chemicals. It has an independent chair, and representatives of different stakeholder groups, including CHEM Trust.
The forum meets quarterly, and the most frequent participant from CHEM Trust is our Head of Advocacy, Dr Anna Watson – who also sits on the steering group for the forum. In addition to participating in the meetings, we have also taken part in subgroups and submitted papers for discussion.
Our team has been involved in the stakeholder forum since it started back in October 2000.
Talking to the UK Government
In addition to the Chemicals Stakeholder Forum, we also have other meetings with officials and ministers in various departments and agencies, including the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), the Department of Health, and the Health Protection Agency. Some of these meetings are jointly attended with other UK NGOs.
Working with other UK-based organisations
We collaborate with a range of other organisations in the UK, for example:
- We work closely with the Greener UK Coalition of NGOs who are campaigning to ensure high environmental standards are maintained, whatever happens with Brexit.
- We work closely with a number of other organisations, including Breast Cancer UK (BCUK), Pesticides Action Network UK (PAN UK), FIDRA (a Scottish NGO) Women’s Environmental Network (WEN) and the Cancer Prevention & Education Society (CPES).
- We are members of Wildlife and Countryside Link.
- We also provide advice to organisations such as Friends of the Earth and WWF-UK.
Working with UK Members of Parliament
CHEM Trust has worked with a number of UK MPs, responded to UK Government consultations and has contributed to UK Parliamentary inquiries, for example:
- We submitted written evidence and gave aural evidence to the Environmental Audit Committee’s 2019 inquiry on Toxic Chemicals in Everyday Life.
- In January 2019 CHEM Trust responded to DEFRA’s request for comments on the draft indicators to be used to show environment change and measure progress in the 25 Year Environment Plan.
- In July 2018 CHEM Trust commented on the UK Government’s initial plans for a new UK chemical regulatory system in the event of a no-deal Brexit. See this blog for more details and an explanation for the delayed publication.
- Joint letter from CHEM Trust and 18 organisations to the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Michael Gove, calling for keeping the UK in the EU main chemicals regulation REACH after Brexit, October 2017; and the response from the Minister responsible for chemicals regulation, Thérèse Coffey, November 2017.
- We submitted written evidence on the impact of TTIP on chemicals regulation to the Environmental Audit Committee of the UK House of Commons, for their inquiry on TTIP and the Environment in the first half of 2015.
We have also submitted responses to other consultation processes and joined calls for action in the UK:
- In December 2018 CHEM Trust responded to the Royal College of Paediatrics and Children’s Health’s call for evidence on the effects of indoor air quality on children and young people’s health.
- In September 2018 CHEM Trust joined 13 UK charities in a call for action to the UK Government in the Environment Act and at the Stockholm Convention in May 2019 to help prevent further polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) toxic chemical waste entering our oceans and killing our mammals. See our comments here.