Important EU referendum question

[Floppityflop]

I am getting quite bored of the EU referendum, but something James Dyson said piqued my curiosity. He seemed to be referring in passing to having to fit appliances with various plugs. But why do plugs have to be fitted at all? I distinctly remember about 20 years ago you had to fit your own plugs to appliances. It wasn't hard, but presumably some people did it wrong and it might have been unsafe. But when exactly did this change and what is the legal requirement to fit plugs before appliances are offered for sale? Is the original source EU law?

[ProfessorPreciseaBug]

Google is your friend..

However as a useless regulation coming out of Brussels one can do not much better than the one that says all restaurants must display a notice to advise customers to enquire about any possible allergens in the food being prepared..

I would be very interested to find out from MN's coming back from abroad if that regulation is being flouted in the rest of Europe.

[iPost]

one that says all restaurants must display a notice to advise customers to enquire about any possible allergens in the food being prepared

I live in a v. rural part of N. Italy

Never seen a sign of that nature.

I hate plugs here. There are different kinds. No matter which of my sockets I go to it's always the wrong kind for the plug on the appliance I want to use. Sometimes feels like I spend a good chunk of each day charging around the house seeking one of the various adaptors we have hiding in the last place I look.

Wouldn't mind an EU law proclaiming ONE kind of plug and ONE kind of socket per country. Not that I think anybody would take any fecking notice.

[Floppityflop]

I agree. I think it's stupid to complain that the EU means you have to fit loads of different plugs - surely the solution is to standardise them across the EU! Obviously there would be transitional implementation issues and Hungary would need to be rewired to introduce the concept of an earth wire... I'm not sure fitting plugs comes from the EU. According to Google, RoSPA campaigned for it for years.

[Winterbiscuit]

It's interesting to hear from an entrepeneur and inventor rather than huge corporations. Dyson has said that the EU holds back British invention, due to large companies lobbying the EU in their own interests.

www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/11245359/Dyson-Britain-should-leave-Europe-to-avoid-being-dominated-by-Germans.html

" Sir James Dyson, the inventor and entrepreneur, has said that he would vote for Britain to leave the European Union to avoid being "dominated and bullied by the Germans".

"He said that the European Union is dominated by "very large German companies" who set the standards and ensure that the "old guard and old technology" is supported while new technology is not."

[Floppityflop]

I imagine he has a point on that. There are bound to be vested interests. The EU doesn't have the capacity to change laws quickly either. That does need to change.

[concertplayer]

Pre-fitted plugs came into being in France and Germany in the 70's.
I know because I lived there I loved it -no more faffing around when I bought
my first ever electric coffee maker

[prh47bridge]

But when exactly did this change and what is the legal requirement to fit plugs before appliances are offered for sale? Is the original source EU law?

The requirement for plugs to be fitted to electrical goods was introduced in 1995. In broad terms any appliance that is designed to be plugged in to the mains and which is intended for domestic use must be supplied with a plug already fitted. This does not apply to appliances such as electric cookers that draw more than 13 amps.

This is a UK regulation which came about as a result of consultation by the government of the day - nothing to do with the EU.

However as a useless regulation coming out of Brussels one can do not much better than the one that says all restaurants must display a notice to advise customers to enquire about any possible allergens in the food being prepared

There is no such regulation. There is, however, a regulation requiring restaurants to advise customers about 14 specific allergens. This can be through menus, leaflets or advice from staff.

[namechangeparents]

Both these rules seem eminently sensible to me. It's much better having appliances pre-fitted with plugs (you can swap them if you move countries or use an adapter) and if you have allergies, it's good to know what allergens may be in the foods you eat.

[lljkk]

I'm from North America where we have never had to fit our own plugs in my lifetime. it's strange.

Anyway, Dyson was angry that the EU banned the very high wattage devices he wants to sell. My anecdotal tuppence is that our DC07 cleans no better, possibly worse than our DC03 V-cleaner ever did. But the DC07 makes a horrid huge amount more noise. Bigger motor which achieves nothing except pointlessly using energy & sounding impressive.