Poisonous dolls warning sparks Bescot Market checks
Trading Standards chiefs in Walsall will visit the town's Bescot Market this weekend amid fears that dolls containing poisonous chemicals are being sold there.
The colourful soft fruit head dolls are subject to a Europe-wide product recall after it emerged they contain phthalates, a chemical used to soften plastics.
The chemical is banned in children's toys amid fears it can cause cancer, deformities and infertility in men. Officials are expected at the market on Sunday to check whether the dolls are being sold after shoppers claimed they had seen them available.
Walsall's cabinet member for public health and protection Councillor Zahid Ali said he will be writing to the EU and to the Chinese Government to ensure the dolls are not sold.
He said: "We don't want to spoil any child's happiness but their health and safety is of paramount importance which is why we are urging parents and carers to remove these toys from their young ones.
"These chemicals should not be used in toys as exposure to them has been linked to cancer, birth defects and infertility in men.
"It is simply not worth taking any risks."
Trading Standards Officers in Walsall first received complaints about these products being on sale at the market early in 2013 and visited traders to ensure they were taken off sale at that time.
