The EU chemicals policy: towards inclusive governance?

This paper investigates to what extent contemporary EU risk regulation responds to demands for inclusive governance. To this end, the paper examines the new EU regulatory framework for the control of chemicals, better known as the REACH Regulation. It identifies and evaluates opportunities for public participation during the negotiation of the REACH proposal (the 'input' stage), in decision-making processes under the REACH Regulation ('throughput'), and at the stage of reviewing decisions taken in compliance with REACH ('output'). The paper argues that formal opportunities for public participation exist and are reasonably satisfactory, but that their significance is eroded by the institutional and functional context in which participation must take place.