Latest news with #Assent
Times
24-07-2025
- Business
- Times
Online sellers are peddling fake cosmetics with impunity
For bargain-hunters interested in cosmetics, online marketplaces such as Amazon Marketplace, eBay, TikTok Shop and Vinted appear to offer a fantastic range of competitively priced products. But there's a serious catch: these sites are being used to sell dangerous fake versions of popular products. The latest investigation from Which? found that at least two thirds of products we bought from third-party sellers on online marketplaces were probably counterfeits. Amazon Marketplace, eBay, Tiktok Shop and Vinted all told us that they strictly prohibit the sale of counterfeit products, and have measures in place to detect and deal with them. However, fake beauty products have previously been found to contain dangerous and carcinogenic chemicals, including arsenic, lead and mercury, according to the Anti Counterfeiting Group. It's horrifying to think that shoppers could be applying these substances to their skin. How has this been allowed to happen? Which? thinks the answer is twofold: a consumer enforcement system that is not fit for purpose and a lack of clear responsibilities for marketplaces to ensure the safety of their products. The role of Trading Standards is to enforce laws that protect consumers. However, our recent freedom of information request found that Trading Standards departments are severely overstretched, and many are deprioritising consumer harms such as counterfeiting. These services, based within local authorities, are in the impossible position of enforcing hundreds of consumer protection laws — on the high street and online — without the resources to meet this challenge. Spotting counterfeit cosmetics is by no means straightforward. The sophistication of some counterfeits and the complexity of online marketplaces highlights why Trading Standards need to police them effectively. The UK is finally taking the necessary steps to update the regulatory obligations on online marketplaces. This week, after years of campaigning by Which?, the Product Regulation and Metrology Act gained Royal Assent; paving the way for new rules to tackle the sale of unsafe products. However, new rules are only as good as their enforcement. Without clear consequences, it's difficult to see where the deterrent lies for dodgy sellers. A better functioning enforcement system would deter many counterfeits from being listed, which would help prevent shoppers being exposed to misleading and dangerous products. If the government is serious about tackling crime and supporting responsible businesses, it must get a grip on this. Sue Davies is Which? head of consumer protection policy
Business Wire
22-04-2025
- Business
- Business Wire
Assent Releases 2024 Sustainability Report Breaking New Ground in Climate, Equity, and Governance
WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Assent Inc., the leader in supply chain sustainability management, today released its 2024 Corporate Sustainability Report, showcasing a year of meaningful progress backed by AI-powered sustainability insights. Assent enhanced climate action, inclusive leadership, and ethical governance while uniting responsible environmental practices and robust business accountability. The report is centered around the core belief that investing in people contributes to stronger business and long-term global impact. In 2024, Assent made bold strides to turn that belief into action. Alongside major steps like achieving full pay equity and expanding leadership development, the company also deepened its investment in responsible innovation. By embedding AI-driven insights into supplier data and risk management, Assent's leaders are enhancing the customer experience and accelerating progress on its mission to bring responsible products to the world — while laying the foundation for long-term, sustainable growth. 'Our corporate sustainability journey starts with people,' said Keira Torkko, Chief People Officer and Chief of Staff at Assent. 'When our team feels valued, empowered, and united by a shared purpose, innovation thrives, customer trust grows, and our collective impact expands across communities, partners, and the planet. We're building more than a company. We're creating a workplace and a world where responsible innovation, inclusion, and integrity aren't just aspirations; they are expectations.' Assent's 2024 sustainability report highlights include: Achieving Pay Equity Milestone: Achieved a 1:1 pay equity ratio, reinforcing Assent's commitment to fair compensation and gender equity across all operations. Strengthening Information Security & Compliance: Earned ISO 27001 certification and maintained a strong SOC 2 Type II audit outcome, underscoring Assent's rigorous approach to data privacy, risk management, and information security. Scope 3 Reductions: Introduced new travel guidelines to help reduce Scope 3 emissions and initiated early-stage supplier engagement on climate targets — recognizing that collective action across the supply chain is essential — and reduced Scope 3 emissions intensity from the previous year, reflecting Assent's commitment to engaging suppliers, improving data quality, and advancing decarbonization across its value chain. As part of its leadership in the sustainability space, Assent voluntarily aligned its reporting with the European Union's Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), demonstrating transparency and accountability to the same standards it helps its customers meet. Powered by AI at every level of the business, Assent is the only company that unifies platform, people, and supplier intelligence to future-proof supply chains amid global disruption. AI was used in the aggregation and normalization of data to enable clearer reporting on our climate performance, while additional AI tools are leveraged to track and interpret global sustainability regulations, including CSRD, CSDDD, GRI, and IFRS S2 disclosure requirements. Moving forward, Assent will blend insights from its regulatory and sustainability experts with AI models to identify high-risk suppliers based on geographic, operational, and industry factors to empower its sustainability reporting. To view the full 2024 Corporate Sustainability Report, visit: About Assent Inc. Assent provides the leading supply chain sustainability management solution and is on a mission to become the global platform of record for supply chain sustainability and compliance for complex manufacturers. Founded in 2010, Assent is the only company that unifies platform, people, and supplier intelligence to future-proof supply chains amid global disruption. Powered by AI, we enable faster, smarter compliance — from predictive risk analysis to automated document review — while delivering unmatched speed, cost efficiency, and confidence. With a proprietary supplier engagement engine and deep regulatory expertise built into our platform and services, Assent helps customers navigate complexity, reduce risk, and accelerate growth.
Yahoo
06-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Social landlords forced to fix dangerous mould from October under Awaab's Law - as charity criticises 'delay'
A law to force social landlords to investigate and fix hazards within a set timescale will be phased in from October, the government has announced. The legislation is named after two-year-old Awaab Ishak, who from a respiratory condition caused by prolonged exposure to mould in the social home his family rented in Rochdale, Greater Manchester. Politics latest: The tragedy sparked after an inquest heard how action to treat and prevent the mould was not taken - despite the boy's father repeatedly raising the issue with Rochdale Boroughwide Housing (RBH). In response, the then Conservative government pledged to introduce Awaab's Law to hold social landlords to account, with Labour vowing to implement and extend it to the private sector if they won the general election, which they did last July. Setting out the next steps, Deputy Prime Minister and Housing Secretary Angela Rayner said it will come into force in the social rented sector from October this year. It means social landlords will be required to address damp and mould hazards that present a significant risk of harm to tenants within fixed timescales. The timescales were not set out in Ms Rayner's statement. A consultation under the Tories had proposed forcing landlords to investigate the problems within 14 days, and fix them within a further seven, but it is not clear if this will still be the case - with more details expected later down the line. Ms Rayner said that from October 2025, social landlords will also have to address all emergency repairs, whether they relate to damp and mould or any other hazard, as soon as possible and within no longer than 24 hours. What happens after 2025? From 2026, the requirements will apply to a wider range of non-emergency hazards beyond damp and mould, including excess cold and excess heat, falls, structural collapse and fire, electrical and hygiene hazards. Then in 2027, the requirements of Awaab's Law will expand to the remaining hazards as defined by the Housing Health and Safety Rating System (excluding overcrowding). This includes issues like keeping a property secure against intruders, inadequate lighting and exposure to noise. 'Delays put people at risk' Ms Rayner said the phased approach "in no way means that social landlords have any leeway" when it comes to meeting their existing duties to keep tenants safe, amid criticism from housing campaigners. She said the sequencing is required so protections to damp and mould can be introduced earlier than would be the case if the government sought to apply Awaab's Law to all hazards from the outset. But Polly Neate, chief executive of Shelter, said: "Four years after Awaab's death, and nearly two years after the Social Housing Regulation Act received Royal Assent, today's announcement means social housing tenants will have to wait years longer for this vital protection. "These delays to implementation represent a real risk to the health and safety of tenants, and puts lives at risk." Awwab's Law follows campaigning from his parents, who said they hoped it would stop other families going through what they did. There are widespread issues with damp, mould and disrepair across homes in England, which are in the worst condition of all European countries while being more expensive to buy, Complaints over social housing increased by over 300% in 2024, while almost half of private renters , Sky News has previously reported. Read More: It is not clear when Awaab's Law could be extended to the private sector, as promised in Labour's manifesto. The government said this will be done through its which is currently going through parliament. Ministers are also consulting on a new Decent Homes Standard, which sets minimum standards for the condition of social homes, and will separately legislate to require social landlords to carry out electrical safety checks and appliance inspections.
