Strengthening "post-inspection", strictly handling violations of goods quality

General Secretary To Lam and President Luong Cuong attended; National Assembly Chairman Tran Thanh Man chaired the meeting.

Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Le Minh Hoan chaired the meeting. Photo: media.quochoi.vn

"Post-control" is associated with inspection and supervision.

Discussing at the meeting, delegate Nguyen Thi Ha ( Bac Ninh delegation) said that it is necessary to promote the transition from "pre-inspection" to "post-inspection" associated with inspection and supervision, clearly defining which areas must be "pre-inspected" and which areas must be "post-inspected". The management principles in the draft Law still lean towards "pre-inspection" management measures. The delegate said that testing the final product is not an effective measure to manage the quality of products and goods.

“In the recent case of 600 fake milk products, although samples were taken for testing and evaluated to be in accordance with standards and regulations before being circulated, the manufacturer did not produce according to the original sample, and the state management agency did not fully inspect and supervise,” said the delegate of the Bac Ninh delegation.

Regarding the classification of goods according to risk levels (low, medium, high), delegate Nguyen Duy Thanh (Ca Mau delegation) stated that this is the basis for producers to choose appropriate product quality and safety control measures and that the state should introduce a compatible inspection regime (inspection frequency), mainly in the "post-inspection" stage, which is necessary. However, the delegate said that the draft Law focuses too much on the "pre-inspection" stage by declaring conformity for each product group, an issue that is still controversial and is inappropriate and underestimates the "post-inspection" measures. "Post-inspection is an important measure of the state to ensure that only quality and safe products are allowed to circulate," the delegate said.

National Assembly delegates attending the meeting. Photo: media.quochoi.vn

Also concerned about the classification of goods according to risk levels, delegate Tran Thi Nhi Ha (Hanoi delegation) suggested that it is necessary to issue a list of goods with medium and high risk levels immediately after the Law takes effect, ensuring consistency and feasibility. The delegate said that all regulations on inspection, examination and handling of violations have not been amended to match the urgent requirements of reality with a proactive, effective and feasible "post-inspection" mechanism.

“Currently, the number of products and goods that have declared or self-declared their quality is increasing, while the team doing post-inspection work is still small and technical means are limited. Post-inspection work is still formal and passive; there is a lack of mechanisms for risk analysis, data connection, and warning monitoring; there is no mechanism to mobilize social participation in this work,” said the delegate.

Delegate Pham Van Hoa (Dong Thap Delegation) expressed his opinion that in reality, there is a situation where "pre-inspection cannot be controlled but post-inspection is negligent", leading to consumers using poor quality goods in recent times. "Many ministries and branches, in addition to state management, must also be responsible for checking the quality of goods, especially post-inspection to regain consumer confidence", the delegate said.

Domestic goods need to be strictly controlled

Concerned about the quality of goods circulating in the domestic market, delegate Nguyen Thi Suu (Hue City Delegation) said that the provisions in the draft Law pose many potential risks. The delegate raised the issue that if goods produced for export have “problems” and are returned, they only need to satisfy technical standards to be allowed to be sold in the domestic market. In addition, the delegate said that by taking advantage of “loopholes” in the unsynchronized quality control and testing system, manufacturers are putting unsold, returned, and poor-quality exported goods into domestic circulation.

“These issues will negatively impact the confidence and competitiveness of domestic goods,” the delegate worried and proposed to only allow circulation in the domestic market if the goods meet the technical standards corresponding to the management requirements of specialized laws and relevant legal regulations of Vietnam for domestically circulated goods.

Delegate Duong Tan Quan (Ba Ria - Vung Tau delegation) discussed at the meeting. Photo: media.quochoi.vn

Delegate Duong Tan Quan (Ba Ria - Vung Tau Delegation) suggested that it is necessary to consider adding regulations on the activities of surveying the quality of goods in the market. "This is one of the "soft" monitoring mechanisms, allowing timely detection of risks, adjusting management policies, while not creating pressure for large-scale inspections," the delegate said, adding that it is necessary to strengthen sanctions for handling acts of quality fraud - considering stronger measures such as product recall - for acts of counterfeiting certificates and counterfeiting labels.

Scene of the morning meeting on May 17. Photo: media.quochoi.vn

In addition, some National Assembly deputies suggested strengthening the management of product and goods quality in e-commerce; building a national database of goods in violation in the digital environment; deploying data connection between e-commerce platforms and state management agencies to ensure the ability to monitor, detect risks early and trace clear responsibilities for each product circulating online.

Receiving and explaining a number of issues of concern to National Assembly deputies, Minister of Science and Technology Nguyen Manh Hung said that for the first time, the concept of national quality infrastructure was mentioned in the draft Law, including the ecosystem of standards, measurement regulations, testing, certification and recognition. This is an essential foundation to ensure the quality of goods, ensure safety for people, and improve state management capacity.

“This is a big step forward in quality management, considering quality management as national infrastructure like transportation, electricity and water infrastructure. The State is responsible for investing in building quality management infrastructure, which will serve as a foundation for businesses and organizations to proactively participate in exploiting and developing products,” said the Minister.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/tang-cuong-hau-kiem-xu-ly-nghiem-vi-pham-ve-chat-luong-hang-hoa-702553.html