Highlights – ENVI exchange of views with ECHA Executive Director Sharon McGuinness – Committee on the Environment, Climate and Food Safety

Source: European Parliament

On 4 June, ENVI held its annual exchange of views with Dr Sharon McGuinness, Executive Director of the European Chemicals Agency (ECHA). The session was part of the regular dialogue between the Parliament and ECHA, focusing on the Agency’s ongoing work, current priorities, and challenges related to chemical safety, regulatory tasks, and resource adequacy.

This was the second ENVI exchange with Dr Sharon McGuinness since her appointment as ECHA Executive Director on 1 December 2022. ECHA has grown significantly since 2007, now employing 591 staff and managing a €127 million budget. It supports the implementation of REACH, CLP, BPR, PIC, and POPs, and carries out tasks under legislation on water, waste, batteries, packaging, and emissions.

Current priorities include evaluating the PFAS restriction proposal submitted by five Member States, on which ECHA’s committees are preparing sectoral opinions to inform the Commission’s and Member States’ decisions. The One Substance, One Assessment package, adopted in December 2023, currently in inter-institutional negotiations , aims to streamline chemical risk assessments and will increase ECHA’s responsibilities. Finally, a future proposal on ECHA’s basic regulation is expected, which will revise its governance and consolidate its financing model to better support its growing mandate.