A new body, created by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, has been created to enhance protections for consumers and the environment and drive increased productivity, growth and business confidence. 

The Office for Product Safety and Standards will manage responses to large-scale product recalls and identify risks to consumers. It comes in the wake of criticism into government handling of the Grenfell Tower disaster.

The announcement comes as part of the government’s response to the Working Group on Product Recalls and Safety. 

In addition to providing support and advice for local authority Trading Standards teams, the office will coordinate work across local authorities where action is needed on a national scale and will ensure the UK continues to carry out appropriate border checks on imported products once the UK leaves the European Union.

Commenting on the announcement, Business Minister Andrew Griffiths said: “The new Office for Product Safety and Standards will strengthen the UK’s already tough product safety regime and will allow consumers to continue to buy secure in the knowledge there is an effective system in place if products need to be repaired or replaced.”

He went on to thank the Working Group for their efforts in improving product safety. 

Neil Gibbins, Chair of the Working Group, said: “It has been my mission to make the public safe since I joined the first service nearly 40 years ago. That’s why I’m pleased to see the government respond to our recommendations with concrete steps to ensure the safety of consumers, now and in the future.”

Working with stakeholders such as consumer groups, manufacturers and importers, the government will continue to ensure the office coordinates the UK’s product safety regime as effectively as possible. 

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/office-for-product-safety-and-standards