Are local authorities going to gain powers to charge fees for intervention?
Since 2012 the Health and Safety Executive have been able to charge for their fees when investigating breaches of health and safety legislation, but that cost recovery scheme is limited to the HSE and health and safety regulations.
Proposal for cost recovery in food regulation
In September 2024, the FSA Board requested that officials undertake exploratory work on the idea that local authorities might recover costs for the delivery of official controls from businesses.
At the March 2025 Board Meeting the FSA had feedback from the research they commissioned which broadly confirmed that enabling cost-recovery would support local authorities to build their resilience and sustainability, in a way that protects public health and supports business growth.
Stakeholder engagement and support
This is clearly a complex issue and one that requires further work and stakeholder engagement not least with food and drink businesses who would be impacted by a cost recovery system.
The local authority stakeholders have expressed strong support for the costs recovery scheme not least because ethe continued costs pressures in the public sector and the impact that has on food regulators to deliver their services.
Future outlook
The idea of cost recovery for food regulatory officials is in its infancy and so there is nothing that business can or should be doing in anticipation of any change, for now. We will be keeping a very close eye on this proposal as it develops.
Contents
- Food for Thought: Food and drink regulatory update: Summer 2025
- Soft Drinks Industry Levy consultation
- Brexit reset deal: Implications for UK-EU food and drink trade
- UK-US tariff deal: The new opportunity for food and drink
- Are you prepared for the new failure to prevent fraud offence?
- The National Food Crime Unit: Will new powers make a difference to tackling food fraud?
- Update on the Deposit Returns Scheme and the Deposit Management Organisation
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