MEMBERS AREA
This area is reserved to Members and Observers of the HMC only
Last update: 16/7/2008
The Parliament of Slovenia ratified on 15 July 2008 the Hallmarking Convention as well as the 2001 Amendment to the Convention. Once Slovenia will have deposited the ratification instrument with the Depositary (= the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs) it will officially become the Convention's 19th Contracting State - most likely by the end of 2008 / beginning of 2009.
The 2001 Amendment to the Convention has been ratified by Hungary and Cyprus, thus increasing the number of Contracting States having ratified this important Amendment to 14 (15 with Slovenia). The Amendment, which considerably modernises the Convention and introduces palladium as a new precious metal, will enter into force once it has been ratified by all 18 (19) Contracting States. There are still four States, which need to ratify: Finland, Lithuania, Netherlands and Poland .
A Delegation, set up by the Standing Committee, will carry out an inspection to Sri Lanka on 28-29 July 2008. The purpose of the inspection is to ensure that Sri Lanka complies with the Convention's requirements.
The next meeting of the Standing Committee, established under the Hallmarking Convention, will take place in Kiev (Ukraine) on 22 September 2008. It will be followed by a meeting of the International Association of Assay Offices (IAAO).
The 62nd meeting of the Standing Committee, set up under the Hallmarking Convention, was held at Goldsmiths’ Hall on 14 April 2008. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Ronald W.A. Le Bas (Irish Assay Office) and attended by 67 officials representing the Convention’s eighteen Contracting States, three Applicant States (Slovenia, Sri Lanka & Ukraine) as well as a number of guests from China, Estonia, Italy, Romania, Singapore (first-time attendance), and Spain.
The Committee noted that Sri Lanka had applied for membership on 4 December 2007. Sri Lanka is the first Asian country to apply for membership - a sign that the Convention is becoming international. The Committee appointed a Delegation which will visit Sri Lanka in July 2008.
During the meeting, the Committee discussed an internal report regarding the practice of “off-shore marking” (i.e. the hallmarking of articles in third countries), which it refused to authorise under the Convention, as well as the possible consequences of services liberalisation (notably the EU Services Directive). It also discussed a report on market surveillance under the Convention.
The Committee noted a report from the Standing Technical Group (STG), which had met in Lisbon (Portugal) on 7 February 2008. The STG is responsible for advising the Committee on technical matters. Various proposals to allow the combination of marks (e.g. combined CCM and fineness mark) were discussed.
The Ukraine offered to host the next meeting in Kiev on 22 September 2008.
The inaugural meeting of the International Association of Assay Offices (IAAO) took place at Goldsmiths' Hall on 15 April 2008. It was chaired by Ms. Nataša Mejak-Vukovic of Slovenia's Metrology Institute and attended by 66 participants from various Assay Offices around the world.
The IAAO discussed its constitution (consisting in a Memorandum of Understanding) as well as its governing principles. It also discussed the organisation of Round Robins. Participants exchanged information on EU-related matters (Mutual Recognition Regulation, Services Directive, acceptance of national hallmarks, etc.) and agreed to establish a web site for the IAAO.
The IAAO agreed to reconvene in Kiev on 23 September 2008.
The IAAO meeting was followed by a “Fakes & Forgery Seminar” organised by the London Assay Office.
