Defra has made the Control of Mercury (Amendment) Regulations 2025 (S.I. 2025/1255), updating Part A of Annex 2 to the UK Mercury Regulation (retained Regulation (EU) 2017/852). The instrument was made on 1 December 2025, laid on 2 December and comes into force on 23 December 2025. It extends to England, Wales and Scotland and is made under Article 20(1), with consent from the Welsh and Scottish Ministers as required by Article 21(8).
Part A of Annex 2 lists mercury‑added products for which export, import and manufacturing are prohibited from specified dates. This amendment inserts further items after existing entries 2, 3, 4, 6 and 9 to implement decisions of the Minamata Convention on Mercury (MC‑4/3 and MC‑5/4) that tighten controls on fluorescent lamps and certain measuring devices.
A new entry 3B brings additional compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs) for general lighting into scope. It captures non‑integrated CFLs at or below 30 watts that are not already covered by entry 3(b), plus integrated CFLs above 30 watts and non‑integrated CFLs above 30 watts. In the annex shorthand, CFL.i denotes integrated lamps and CFL.ni denotes non‑integrated lamps; entry 3 already covered certain ≤30 W models by mercury content threshold.
Further text is inserted after entry 6 to address cold‑cathode and external‑electrode fluorescent lamps for electronic displays beyond the existing length‑based categories, consistent with the EU’s 2023 delegated act used to align with the Minamata decisions.
A new entry covers electrical and electronic measuring devices containing mercury-specifically melt pressure transducers, melt pressure transmitters and melt pressure sensors. A narrow exemption applies for devices installed in large‑scale equipment or used for high‑precision measurement where no suitable mercury‑free alternative exists.
For items drawn from the Minamata decisions and reflected in the EU delegated act, the prohibition date is 31 December 2025; the UK instrument itself commences on 23 December 2025. Businesses should assume manufacture, import and export of the newly listed products is not permitted after the end of 2025 unless an exemption applies.
The amendment applies in Great Britain. Northern Ireland implements EU amendments through separate enforcement legislation. In November 2025, the Control of Mercury (Enforcement) (Amendment) Regulations 2025 updated the Northern Ireland regime to reflect EU changes on dental amalgam and other mercury‑added products.
Compliance work now is practical. Lighting manufacturers and importers should review catalogues for any integrated or non‑integrated CFLs above 30 W intended for general lighting and plan last shipments accordingly. Polymer processors and equipment suppliers should audit extrusion lines for melt pressure transducers, transmitters and sensors, documenting whether a unit falls within the large‑scale or high‑precision carve‑out and whether a suitable mercury‑free alternative exists. Under Article 5 of the retained Regulation, the prohibitions apply to export, import and manufacturing from the annex dates.
The legal mechanism is the post‑EU‑exit power allowing the Secretary of State to amend Annexes 1 and 2 to align with Minamata decisions, with devolved consent and negative procedure scrutiny for Great Britain. Defra indicates a de minimis impact and has published an Explanatory Memorandum alongside the instrument.