Pesticides

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Pesticides are covered both by the COSHH Regulations and separate regulations that require employers to:

• take all reasonable precautions to protect human health and the environment;

• confine the application of the pesticide to the crops or area to be treated; and

• ensure when using pesticides in certain specified areas, for example, those used by the general public, that the amount of pesticide used and the frequency of use is as low as are reasonably practicable.

The HSE explains that as of 1 January 2021, an independent pesticides regulatory regime is in operation in Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). New decisions taken under the EU regime will not apply in Great Britain. This includes active substance and maximum residue level (MRL) decisions and any new EU plant protection product (PPP) legislation. The HSE remains the regulator for the whole of UK.

More information can be found on the HSE website (www.hse.gov.uk/pesticides).