On the afternoon of November 23, the National Assembly discussed in the hall the draft Law on Chemicals (amended).
Speaking at the meeting, delegate Nguyen Hai Dung (Nam Dinh delegation) said that according to the 2007 Chemical Law and the Draft Amendment Law, the responsibility for state management of chemicals is assigned to the Ministries depending on the purpose of chemical use.
For example, the Ministry of Health manages chemicals used to prepare pharmaceuticals for humans, or chemicals used in disinfectants and insecticides in medical household appliances.
The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development manages chemicals in cultivation, animal husbandry, aquaculture, veterinary medicine, and plant protection.
For the Ministry of Public Security and the Ministry of National Defense to manage chemicals in the fields of security and national defense.
According to delegate Nguyen Hai Dung, due to the versatility of a particular chemical used in many different industries, a chemical is managed by many ministries. For example, laughing gas, N2O, and dioxide are managed by the Ministry of Industry and Trade when used in industry, while the Ministry of Health manages them in food and medicine.
Therefore, it leads to overlapping in management when a chemical is circulating on the market, it is impossible to determine in which field it is used, what its purpose is. On the other hand, due to different purposes of use, the regulations of the ministries are also different, not synchronized.
The Nam Dinh delegation gave an example: in the industrial sector, N2O gas is on the list of chemicals with restricted production and trading, and is strictly managed in the import, production, and trading stages. However, in the medical sector, N2O is on the list of permitted food additives, so the procedures for trading and trading are simple.
The above lack of uniformity leads to businesses circumventing the law on registering chemicals for use in areas that are less subject to supervision and management, thereby bringing dangerous chemicals to the market, causing social insecurity.
This delegate said that in order to avoid overlap between ministries and avoid legal loopholes as above, a type of chemical when imported or circulated on the market should be classified under one source.
Explaining and accepting this issue, Minister of Industry and Trade Nguyen Hong Dien said that due to its versatility, chemicals can be used in many different industries and fields. Therefore, a type of chemical can be managed by many ministries and sectors depending on its intended use.
According to Minister Nguyen Hong Dien, the draft law also clearly stipulates the management responsibilities of ministries, localities and each functional unit.
However, to ensure flexibility in operation and long-term stability of the Law, the drafting agency will study and accept the direction of only including in the Law issues under the authority of the National Assembly.
“The detailed contents will be assigned to the Government to regulate. At the same time, review and evaluate regulations to clearly define the management responsibilities of agencies managing, producing and transporting chemicals.
Continue to review and evaluate the resources of central and local management agencies to ensure effective implementation of decentralization," the Minister of Industry and Trade emphasized.
