Brexit was supposed to free Britain from onerous EU regulations and inefficiencies. In reality, the inefficiencies are still there and the regulations were protecting British citizens from toxic waste and deadly chemicals in the environment. The Guardian has a well-researched report into the current state of the environment in Britain. It's not good.
As the campaign group Chem Trust documents, our shadow version of the EU system, called UK Reach, is beset by underfunding, understaffing, a skills crisis and an impossible workload. It looks to me like the kind of failure-by-design that afflicts so much of environmental regulation in the UK.
This dysfunction leaves us exposed to toxins now being banned or restricted in Europe. For example, tetraethyl lead has long been banned from fuel for surface vehicles. But it continues to be used in aircraft fuel, ensuring we are sprayed with a chemical that causes neurological disorders. The EU, after long resisting the obvious step, has at last ruled that it must be phased out. But the UK hasn’t. It will remain legal here. The same goes for endocrine-disrupting chemicals in children’s toys, formaldehyde, brominated flame retardants and the microplastics intentionally added to fertilisers and artificial sport surfaces.
US readers should note that this is a precursor to what will happen to environmental regulations should the Trump and the Republicans take power in November.
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