European member states achieved political agreement on REACH, the new chemicals regulation, on 13 December. The UK currently holds the presidency of the European Union (EU) and Lord Bach, who represented the UK in the negotiations, welcomed the successful outcome. He said: "The agreement achieved here today offers the opportunity to achieve proper protection of people and the environment whilst maintaining the competitiveness of European industry. REACH will provide the tools necessary to provide detailed information on some 30,000 substances used in the EU, while strengthening the controls covering the substances of most concern. This will allow for a huge leap forward in our awareness of the impact of chemicals and other substances and so ensuring the highest level of protection for European citizens."
