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28th January 2021
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Water Label praised by Minister
At the recent AGM of the Keele-based Bathroom Manufacturers Association, a packed house of over 60 members heard a speech from Dan Rogerson MP, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for water, forestry, rural affairs and resource management. He praised the work of the association and in particular its development of the European Water Label.
Steve Lee, President of the BMA, welcomed Mr. Rogerson who had broken away from his usual busy schedule to attend the BMA's meeting which was held in Pall Mall, London, late last month.
The audience were delighted to hear Mr. Rogerson talk about his support for the Water Label project, brainchild of the BMA, and now seen on 6,500 bathroom and kitchen products in over 30 countries. He applauded the efforts of the BMA to promote the label in the UK and across Europe and was "hugely heartened" to see how the label was influencing purchasing decisions. This was just the first step for the label which had the potential to be used on a wide range of water using products.
He explained how and why water supply had become a key issue in the UK, and confirmed that the Water Act 2014, which received Royal Assent in May, would reform the water industry making it more innovative and responsive to customers. He was delighted to see that that the voluntary Water Label would be well established when the reforms enabled by the Act would come in.
During question time the MP talked about the importance of bathroom retailers in promoting the Water Label to consumers but confirmed that there were no plans to provide cash incentives to consumers to replace their old appliances.
He concluded with congratulations to the BMA and its members in developing the Water Label describing it as "at the cutting edge" in European product labelling.
The multi award winning European Water Label is a voluntary labelling scheme administered by the BMA for the Water Label Company. It has over 6,500 products listed on the database today. The BMA launched its original Water Efficient Product Labelling Scheme in 2006. The scheme, through its recognisable label and online database, simply shows the water-using characteristics of bathroom and kitchen products so that would-be purchasers can choose those which ideally suit their circumstances.
In 2012 the BMA upgraded and enhanced the scheme. A separate not-for-profit Water Label Company Ltd was formed. Following intense negotiations with partners in Europe the scheme was adopted throughout the EU 28 countries, plus Turkey, Israel and Russia, and in 2013 support from major European builders merchants and retailers and two European trade bodies (CEIR and FECS) was announced.
In a further enhancement, the European Water Label was born in Autumn 2013. The website was upgraded and more companies joined. It is regarded by the UK Government and the EU Commission as the scheme of choice. The European Water Label has reached its tipping point and is now poised to grow faster and further and its looks to the future.
Image: Dan Rogerson, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at DEFRA; Yvonne Orgill, CEO, BMA; Steve Lee, President, BMA
T: 01782 631619
W: www.bathroom-association.org
www.europeanwaterlabel.eu / www.thewatercalculator.org.uk
4th July 2014