Update follows Theresa May speech

08 February 2017

BSI has re-affirmed its commitment to the European Standards System in the wake of Prime Minister Theresa May’s speech on the subject of Britain’s exit from the European Union.

The PM outlined her plans to trigger the process for ‘Brexit’ at the end of March, subject to agreement from Parliament.

The updates states: “We expect now that Brexit will probably include the UK’s departure from the Single Market and the Customs Union, but this does not affect our ambition that BSI, for the UK, will continue to be part of the European Standards System (CEN, CENELEC and ETSI).

“That would mean that UK experts will continue to contribute to the development of European Standards. Those European Standards will still be adopted as British Standards, and conflicting standards withdrawn.

“CEN and CENELEC are independent, private organizations that have a broader membership than just the EU, including non-EU countries such as Switzerland, Serbia and Turkey.

“European Standards are used voluntarily as tools to improve business performance and enhance consumer safety. While some of these standards also enable companies to comply with EU laws, and are cited in the EU’s Official Journal for that purpose, they are not regulations.”

Read the update in full

View House of Lords committee hearing.