BIOCIDES the HSE ' s concerns, raising questions about consistency, proportionality and the potential competitive disadvantage faced by new applicants compared with existing approval holders.
Against this backdrop, the HSE consulted on reforms to GB BPR, GB CLP and GB PIC between June and August 2025. The government’ s February 2026 response outlined four key proposals for biocides:
• Recognition of active substance approvals from trusted overseas regulatory authorities( limited to the EU)
• Replacement of fixed active substance renewal deadlines with a risk-based call-in system
• Expanded provisions for essentialuse derogations
• Greater flexibility to amend GB BPR through secondary legislation
While these proposals offered opportunities to reduce duplication and improve regulatory efficiency, most required primary legislative changes and no estimated timelines for the implementation of these proposals were provided.
Essential-use reform offered a potential exception through powers available under the Retained EU Law( Revocation & Reform) Act 2023, but these were subject to a 23 June 2026 deadline. Consequently, considerable uncertainty remained over when the proposed reforms would translate into meaningful regulatory change.
What has happened since
The first significant development has been legislative. The Chemicals( Health & Safety)( Amendment, Consequential & Transitional Provision) Regulations 2026, which I highlighted back in May as still awaiting parliamentary scrutiny, became law as SI 2026 / 484. The instrument was debated in the House of Lords on 27 April, where concerns were raised regarding HSE capacity, environmental protection and regulatory divergence from the EU. 2
For GB BPR, the legislation introduces three principal changes. First, it postpones the expiry of qualifying active substance approvals to 31 July
SI 2026 / 484 gives flexibility for essential products like drinking water disinfectants
2031 where a renewal application has been submitted. This potentially affects up to 173 active substance / product type combinations whose approvals would otherwise expire by 30 July 2031.3 The extension is conditional, however, and an earlier renewal decision can supersede the postponed expiry date.
Second, it amends the critical situation provisions under Article 55( 1), allowing emergency permits to be extended beyond the existing 550-day limit where the continued need for a biocidal product is unlikely to be temporary. This provides greater flexibility for products considered essential to public health or critical infrastructure, such as drinking water disinfectants, where an interruption in supply could have significant consequences.
Third, the instrument clarifies and extends data protection provisions, including amendments relating to Article 95, addressing inconsistencies in regulatory data protection and supporting the recovery of costs associated with generating scientific evidence to meet regulatory requirements.
Together, these amendments provide important short-term regulatory continuity and address immediate risks facing the GB biocides market. However, they do not deliver the wider structural reforms proposed in February, including the recognition of overseas active substance approvals and a risk-based renewal system. Although the Article 55 amendments represent a targeted expansion of existing derogation provisions, the broader proposals remain unresolved.
The legislation therefore provides welcome breathing space for affected approval holders but does not resolve the underlying assessment backlog or establish a clear timetable for longer-term reform.
The real headline
A potentially more consequential development has emerged outside the biocides consultation process altogether. On 9 March 2026, the Government confirmed that biocides would fall within the proposed UK –
NOV / DEC 2026 SPECCHEMONLINE. COM
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