According to my understanding, your 3A fuse is also for Ground-fault protection, whereas by us we have a GFI (we call it a differential) for that.
Yes, the fuse in plug, and those at the main distribution panel also provide ground-fault protection for TN-S and TN-C-S systems which don't incorporate a GFI.
Roger,
Yes, that was a while ago now, wasn't it? (By the way, I'm still reading the '02 NEC, but haven't had a lot of time recently!).
The two-breaker concept sounds interesting, but there's a problem (aside from being against our "Regs." that is).
If we used two breakers as you suggest, then we could only utilize the full 32A capacity of the ring and keep the current down to 16A on each breaker if the load were evenly distributed. Take an example: If the full load of 32A were connected at outlets approx. 25% of the distance around the ring, then by the resistance in the cables, one breaker would carry only 8A while the other would have to supply 24A.
