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Gormley light bulb ban NOT exempt from EU regulations

Issued : Thursday 10 January, 2008

Any suggestions that the European Commission yesterday gave Environment Minister John Gormley the go-ahead to ban the traditional light bulb by January 2009, simply don’t stand up to scrutiny.

The Minister is being disingenuous in giving the impression that he has got the go ahead to his proposal to ban incandescent bulbs, when he has merely got support in principle for the idea.

Minister Gormley said today that his plans have received support from the European Commisision and that he was told by Vice President Günter Verheugen that the Commission would be ready to accelerate its own planned regulation as much as possible. It is hardly surprising that the Commission is supportive of the principle of introducing energy efficiency stardards for light bulbs, since they themselves have already commenced their own study into this. In fact, it was the European Commission who has been leading the way on this issue not John Gormley.

While support from EU Commissioners is certainly to be welcomed, it falls well short of the Commission giving Minister Gormley permission to take regulatory short cuts by by-passing EU Technical Standards Directives.

No such permission was given to Minister Gormley yesterday, nor could it be. The Commission and the Minister are bound by European Directives in this area that are there to protect the free movement of goods, and on close reading of Minister's statement he now admits for the first time, that he will have to comply with EU notification procedures under the EU Technical Standards Directives.

As I have pointed out previously, under EU Directives, if a Member State proposes to bring in minimum standards for any manufactured products they must notify the European Commission with the proposed regulations. The Commission and the European Council can delay the member State from implementing its proposal by up to 21 months after the notification. At a minimum, Ireland must wait 3 to 4 months after drafting regulations to bring in minimum standards in relation to light bulbs to allow the European Commission to notify all of the other EU member states about the draft proposals.

If at that stage there is European Union proposed legislation in the same area, as there is in this case, the European Commission can delay the Irish proposed ban by a further 18 months (21 months in total). European Commission can only consider giving the go ahead to proposals such as the lightbulb ban from the time they are formally notified with draft regulations by the Minister and this has not happened yet.

There are good practical reasons for these directives being in place. Issues that have to be taken into account in any proposed ban or phasing out of incandescent light bulbs include the impact of the proposed ban on the Irish domestic lightbulb manufacturing industry. People's jobs could be at stake if the Minister does not allow an Irish company like Solus lights and bulbs who manufacture traditional lightbulbs in Ireland time to adjust and if he does not allow a sufficient lead in time to an outright ban of traditional bulbs. If Ireland was allowed to jump the gun ahead of any proposed European Union phasing out of traditional lightbulbs members of the public and electrical contractors would be very likely to go to Newry to purchase the cheaper incandescent lightbulbs there for example. Currently approximately 75 percent of CFL lightbulbs are manufactured and imported from China and this is why the EU might require of Ireland as well as the rest of the European Union members states a phasing out of traditional lightbulbs over a number of years. A very small percentage of the domestic lighting market is currently made up of CFL's. Most people currently buy incandescent light bulbs.

The Minister has stated that on environmental grounds he may be able to set aside European Law. However under these Directives and EU law generally the Internal Market is paramount and the EU in considering any proposal to bring in minimum standards for domestic lighting must consider concerns such as impacts on people with low incomes having to purchase bulbs that are up to 10 times more expensive. It must also consider the environmental impacts of such a proposal fully. Therefore issues such as the fact that CFL bulbs contain mercury, are mainly imported from China, and will reduce heat in homes thereby making domestic heating systems compensate with greater heat output, will all have to be taken into account.

The Minister is in denial. The fact of the matter is that he is going to have to delay his proposed ban of incandescent light bulbs and have a proper consultation on his proposal with all stakeholders including the Irish domestic lightbulb manufacturing industry and the public. He needs to implement any such move in a way that takes into account the needs of low income families and people who cannot for medical reasons use CFL's. He needs to ensure that CFL's are not dumped on landfill thereby creating a risk to the Environment and that CFL's are as far as possible not merely imports from China and that Irish Industry can adjust to manufacturing more of them at home.