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In a judgment released this morning (R (European Federation for Cosmetic Ingredients v Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Attorney General [2014] EWHC 4222 (Admin)), Mr Justice Lewis has asked the European Court of Justice to rule on the interpretation of the EU ban on animal testing of cosmetics products and ingredients used in cosmetics. That ban is contained in Article 18 of Regulation 1223/2009/EU on cosmetics products. The ban prohibits the marketing in the EEA of cosmetics products tested on animals or containing ingredients tested on animals, where such testing was done in order to meet the requirements of the Regulation.
The questions referred concern the extent to which the ban applies to cosmetics products or ingredients tested on animals for the purposes of regulatory requirements imposed by non-EEA countries.
The European Court of Justice is likely to take around 18 months to give its ruling on this issue.
George Peretz represented BIS and the Attorney General; Alan Bates represented the British Union for the Abolition of Vivisection and the European Coalition to end Animal Experiments, which intervened in the proceedings.