Following reports in a section of the local media, in which a person whose hairdresser had used hair colouring containing PPD which brought out an allergic reaction, the Technical Regulations Division within the Malta Competition and Consumer Affairs Authority immediately contacted both the customer and the newspaper to collect all possible information on the product. The product was withdrawn from the customer and is being investigated to ensure that only products obeying the regulations, including adequate information on method of use, were on the local market.

If the product involved was not in line with regulations, adequate steps would be taken to redress the situation, Prime Minister Lawrence Gonzi told Parliament in reply to a question by Labour MP Anthony Agius Decelis.

Initial investigations had shown that the product did not specify that it contained phenylenediamines but another substance referred to as toluene-2.5-diamine.

Earlier in his reply, Dr Gonzi said that the use of PPDs in hair colouring products was permitted only up to a concentration of six per cent. PPDs were known to occasionally cause allergic reactions in subjects, so the regulations on cosmetics laid down that this possibility should be reflected in the information on the bottle.

He pointed out that there were other substances in hair colouring products that could cause similar reactions to those caused by PPDs.