Issue - meetings

The annual Food Safety Service Plan details the council’s commitment to the delivery of the food safety service. It covers key areas of food law enforcement and relevant management arrangements and targets against which the Council will monitor service delivery.

(i)         that the conclusions of the Food Standards Agency’s audit of Brent’s food safety arrangements be noted;

(ii)        that the action which has been taken to date be noted and the Council’s action plan in Appendix 2 of the report from the Strategic Director Environment and Neighbourhoods be endorsed;

(iii)       that approval be  given to the Food Safety Service Plan for 2015/16.

Councillor Crane (Lead Member, Environment) introduced the annual Food Safety Service Plan which detailed the council’s commitment to the delivery of the food safety service. It covered key areas of food law enforcement and relevant management arrangements and targets against which the council would monitor service delivery. Councillor Crane referred to concerns over the capacity of the service and the interim arrangements introduced which had halved the backlog of inspections. A major review of regulatory services would also be taking place in the light of the need to meet statutory responsibilities with reduced financial resources.

Sue Harper (Strategic Director, Environment and Neighbourhoods) acknowledged that data from the Consumers Association indicated that the borough’s performance in food hygiene had declined and worsened for 2013/14 however, she was confident of a more typical and acceptable performance for 2014/15 as a consequence of the investment to reduce the number of overdue inspections.

Councillor Mashari raised questions on the implications for public health of the two-team approach to inspections introduced in February 2015 and the Strategic Director assured that officers holding a lower level of competency would be assigned to food businesses which posed a much lower risk to consumers or who were broadly compliant with the law. Councillor Hirani (Lead Member, Adults, Health and Well-being) contributed that a report on healthy catering was due to be presented in the Summer.

RESOLVED:

(i)         that the conclusions of the Food Standards Agency’s audit of Brent’s food safety arrangements be noted;

(ii)        that the action which has been taken to date be noted and the council’s action plan in Appendix 2 of the report from the Strategic Director Environment and Neighbourhoods be endorsed;

(iii)       that approval be given to the Food Safety Service Plan for 2015/16.