This snapshot taken on 26/07/2008, shows web content selected for preservation by The National Archives. External links, forms and search boxes may not work in archived websites.
Lord Sainsbury of TurvilleUKAS Accreditation Awareness Campaign Launch |
 |
|
| (Click picture for biography) | |
Good afternoon, I am delighted to have been asked to help launch this Accreditation Awareness Campaign. The United Kingdom Accreditation Service is an unsung hero of the UK's economic infrastructure, working diligently away with little recognition but always in the public interest. I will speak more later about how accreditation fits into some of my Department's work. The range of activity where accreditation can be used, will I think surprise you. But it is clear that accreditation makes a vital contribution to the effective operation of our economy. And I am convinced that raising awareness of UKAS and of the value of accreditation across business and government is essential to maintaining a strong and effective accreditation framework for the United Kingdom. This is therefore a very timely campaign. My Department, believes that UKAS has an important part to play in the economy. We helped form UKAS in 1995. We recognise UKAS as the sole national body for the accreditation of laboratories, inspection and certification bodies across a broad range of activities. We allow it to use the well-recognised National Accreditation Marks. It is, therefore, vitally important that the value of UKAS is recognised both by Government and business. That is why I am pleased that the two main targets of this campaign will be Government Departments, including my own, and business. I am pleased that DTI will host the first Workshop for Government Departments this Wednesday and I'm sure that it will be a most helpful event. The new year will see a rolling programme of regional briefings for business and it will be important to ensure that the message gets down to the grass roots of the UK business community. Earlier this year, I considered Government support for the existing accreditation structure and was pleased to confirm UKAS'position as the sole national accreditation body. I also sought support from Ministers in other Government departments for UKAS and the awareness campaign and I can confidently report back to you now that you have this Government's support for your activities. Against this background, I think that it would be helpful to consider how accreditation plays a part across a broad range of Government policy areas. INDUSTRIAL POLICY We are witnessing a fundamental shift taking place in our economy and society driven by globalisation, technology and increasing competition from low-wage countries. In this new world we will only be able to compete through knowledge, creativity and enterprise, and we are seeing rapid progress in terms of generating business from the science base. Britain is home to strong science-based industries in aerospace and pharmaceuticals as well as being a leading centre for opto-electronics, biotechnology, many design disciplines, computer games and mobile telephone software and services. The Government is determined to seize the opportunities which advances in science present to create a safer and healthier society, a cleaner environment. and a dynamic Knowledge-driven economy. But, consumers are concerned that new products may carry risks and these risks cannot be totally eliminated. People rightly expect proper safeguards against potential public risks and full information on the implications of scientific developments. Proposals in the recent Science and Innovation White Paper 'Excellence and Opportunity'will introduce a framework of proper safeguards, information and accountability, providing the public trust which scientific developments must secure in order to benefit society. Accreditation has a very clear role to play in this area by ensuring the competence of the laboratories involved in testing and so giving consumers confidence in new products and materials, and the way that the risks are assessed and managed. CONSUMERS Consumers are becoming increasingly sophisticated, knowledgeable and demanding - often driving new developments and stimulating innovation. Businesses need to listen to their customers because they can drive continuous improvement and identify weaknesses. It is clear that open and competitive markets are the best way of securing the best deal for consumers but where there is an unacceptable risk to public health and safety then we must address the weakness either through regulation by Government or through self-regulation. Accreditation has a very clear role here. UKAS is heavily involved in schemes not just emanating from my Department but right across the breadth of Government on issues as diverse as food safety to cowboy builders and sustainable forestry. Consumers are now very focused, not only on where a product originates, but how it is made, what from and the environmental and social impacts of the production process. These are important questions that accreditation can help to answer. E.COMMERCE E-commerce also offers new opportunities for consumers. With the expansion of internet shopping, consumers have more choice than ever before but there are concerns. Consumers must be certain that confidential information will be protected; payments are secure and any complaints will be sorted out easily. By establishing a regulatory framework that is flexible and can keep up with the speed of developments in this fast moving market, our approach should provide confidence for both the consumer and businesses. This is based upon co-regulation wherever possible. Government setting the public policy objectives but then tasking industry with actually achieving them. UKAS is already involved in some areas associated with e-commerce. They accredit the certification of information security management systems and are involved in the T.Scheme covering 'electronic signatures'where they are working with Trust Service Providers. There may be scope for further UKAS involvement in this area as it develops. COMPETITIVENESS In the knowledge driven economy, innovation is a key to prosperity, turning ideas and knowledge into products and services. Standardisation plays an important role in ensuring that innovation is cascaded across all sectors of industry and transposed into business opportunities. But for markets to function properly, purchasers must have confidence that standards are actually being met. UKAS accreditation stands at the summit of the conformity assurance infrastructure. It is the lynch pin which holds the system together. It is imperative that we have the quality infrastructure in place to translate the advances generated by innovation into marketable commodities. In the United Kingdom, I think that we have a pre-eminent quality infrastructure but we must not rest on our laurels. As the life-cycle of products gets shorter, then the quality infrastructure of the UK must become more reactive. It must react in 'real time'to industrial changes and developments to ensure the competitiveness of our industries. Accreditation is a valuable aid to competitiveness. The fact that a company has made a concerted effort to have its products, processes or services voluntarily evaluated for quality is a clear indication of its desire to be competitive. By way of example, accredited certification of ISO 9000 quality management system standards is one way that companies can raise their competitive edge in an open market. Accreditation is the key to the implementation of management systems. It is only with the assurance of confidence in the impartiality and integrity of the certification process that customers can have confidence in a supplier's management system. This is a key factor in the effective operation of supply chains. Only by fully implementing the standards can a company derive the real benefits in terms of efficiency, increased productivity, competitiveness and customer satisfaction. Of course these standards are not mandatory. There are certification bodies and laboratories which choose to operate without accreditation and companies are free to use the certification body or laboratory of their choice. But it is important for business to be aware of the benefits of accreditation. It is for business to make their choices; but this campaign should help to ensure that the decisions they make are informed decisions. EUROPE UNION I have spoken about the impact of accreditation on UK business. But this is a global issue. In Europe, the UK is at the forefront of efforts to make the Single Market work effectively. One area in particular is the breaking down of barriers to the free movement of goods within the single market. UKAS has a clear role in this because accreditation is the basis for the assessment of the 'notified bodies'appointed by Government for the specific New Approach product safety directives. Without the confidence provided by UKAS, the free movement of goods could not operate properly. Needless to say, there are still problems in certain areas - not covered by the New Approach directives - but these are ones that we are determined to break down. INTERNATIONAL TRADE Similarly within the context of international trade, accreditation is coming more to the fore because access to other markets, goods and services is key to our prosperity. This is why we support a comprehensive new round of multilateral trade negotiations within the World Trade Organisation. Technical barriers to trade need to be removed to facilitate the free movement of goods across borders. Conformity assessment requirements are often seen as a way for countries that have already largely liberalised their tariff regimes to maintain protectionism in support of their domestic industries. The WTO has tried to reduce these barriers through its Technical Barriers to Trade Agreement, though with varying degrees of success. It is now widely recognised that, by requiring the testing of a product in each export market, conformity assessment procedures do constitute technical barriers to trade. This is a burden on business. What we need to see is a move by all countries towards one test accepted globally. This is still some way off in many respects. But within the international accreditation community, the national accreditation bodies are making a great deal of progress through multilateral agreements. I am pleased to say that UKAS plays a leading part in the European Co-operation on Accreditation (EA) and through the IAF and ILAC. These agreements are still at an early stage but already the WTO is beginning to take notice of the contributions that they could make to the facilitation of trade. CONCLUSION In conclusion, I hope that I have demonstrated briefly the value of accreditation to so many aspects of the UK economy. UKAS will I am sure benefit from this Awareness Campaign which should ensure that businesses and government are more aware of the services UKAS can provide. But Government and business will also benefit for a number of reasons. Firstly, it is inefficient for government to keep re-inventing the wheel every time that evaluation is required when a professionally competent organisation like UKAS already exists to undertake these responsibilities. Secondly, business and the economy of this country needs an authoritative national body to reassure current and prospective customers on the competence of our conformity assessment community. The widely recognised national accreditation mark that UKAS is able to bestow demonstrates that the United Kingdom's products and services are of the best quality on the market and adds to their competitiveness. It is of course up to the market to decide on quality issues. Government can only advise and encourage best practice. In our view, businesses that require the services of a conformity assessment body, be it a laboratory, inspection company or certification body should look first for the National Accreditation Mark. I believe that this campaign of UKAS is timely and extremely important. It has the full backing of the Government and I hope it will be a great success. |
|
|
|
|
Other speeches by Lord Sainsbury of Turville
(the following are available from the archive) |
|
