Emily Miles is to leave her role as the FSA’s Chief Executive in September 2024 following her appointment as Director General of Food, Biosecurity and Trade at Defra.  

Katie Pettifer, who is currently the Director of Strategy and Regulatory Compliance, at the FSA will act as interim CEO while a permanent replacement is found. Emily Miles said: 

I’m delighted to take up this new challenge, but I’m really sad to be leaving the FSA. I joined it in 2019, before Brexit, the pandemic, the Ukraine war, and the cost of living crisis.   

The organisation has achieved a huge amount in these five years with a determined focus on delivering food you can trust. I know that I’m leaving the FSA in the strong hands of the FSA leadership team and our Chair Professor Susan Jebb.  I am very grateful for the hard work and dedication of my colleagues in the FSA, and look forward to continuing to work with them in my new role. 

The BFFF wishes Emily all the best and look forward to working with her once again in her new role. 

The Chair of the Food Standards Agency (FSA), Professor Susan Jebb, has had her appointment extended, having previously indicated her intention to stand down. 

Professor Jebb’s three-year term as FSA Chair was due to end on 30 June 2024, but Ministers had asked her to stay on. There was insufficient time before the election to complete this process but a temporary extension has been agreed to allow consideration by new Ministers. Professor Jebb who, alongside her FSA role, is also Professor of Diet and Population Health at the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences at the University of Oxford, said:  

“It remains a huge privilege to be the Chair of such a fantastic organisation, and I am happy to remain as FSA Chair at this important time. I am extremely grateful to colleagues at the University of Oxford whose support has made this possible.”  

The appointment is made by the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care and counterparts in Wales and NI.   

Last week, King Charles outlined the new Labour government’s legislative plans in a speech to Parliament.

Outlining more than 35 bills that ministers want to pass over the next parliamentary session, some include bills originally tabled by the previous government but were not passed before the election took place.

Some of the main points are summarised below:

Martyn’s Law
Legislation will be introduced to improve the safety and security of public venues to “keep the British public safe from terrorism”. This is a reference to ‘Martyn’s Law’ (the Terrorism (Protection of premises) Draft Bill), which was put forward in draft by the previous government.

Crime and Policing Bill
This will give police new powers to tackle antisocial behaviour and make assaulting shop workers a specific crime.

Employment Rights Bill
‘Exploitative’ zero-hours contracts will be banned through a new Employment Rights Bill. Through this Bill, the government would ‘legislate to introduce a new deal for working people to ban exploitative practices and enhance employment rights.’ The Bill, the details of which have yet to be issued, is likely to cover several of the workers’ rights pledges that were contained in Labour’s pre-election manifesto. For example: making flexible working a default right from day one, and giving greater protection to whistleblowers.

Other highlights

Other highlights include:

• A Renters’ Rights Bill which will ban so-called no fault evictions and extend a series of building safety rules for social tenants, known as Awaab’s Law, to private renters.
• Legislation to streamline the process for approving critical infrastructure, and overhaul rules on the compulsory purchase of land.
• Reintroduction of plans already set out relating to tobacco and vaping, meaning anyone who turns 15 or younger in 2024 will never legally be sold tobacco products. On vaping, it will give ministers the power to restrict the flavours, packaging and product presentation of vaping products.
• Legislation on mental health will lead to a wide-ranging reform of the 1983 Mental Health Act.
• A Race Equality Bill will extend the right to make equal pay claims under the Equality Act to ethnic minority workers and disabled people, and bring in new pay reporting requirements for bigger firms.
• Legislation to deliver a pledge for a ‘Hillsborough Law’, placing a legal duty of candour on public servants.
• A Digital Information and Smart Data Bill will allow people to use digital ID to buy age-restricted products and for things like pre-employment checks.
• The establishment of publicly-owned Great British Energy to invest in renewable energy.
• Train operators will be brought into public ownership, and local leaders will be allowed to “take control” of local bus services.

The House of Lords debate the different subject areas over the six days following the speech. The final day of debate takes place on 25 July.

The HSE released its annual statistics for GB which are derived from RIDDOR for 2023/2024, these show 138 workers killed in work related accidents.

These statistics on fatalities really don’t show much improvement from recent years, this time we see falls from height being the biggest cause of fatal injury again, this is followed by struck by moving vehicle. These two causes alone represent 70% of all fatal injuries to workers in 2023/24.

The construction and agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors continue to account for the greatest number of workers killed in fatal accidents each year, between them accounting for just over half of all fatal injuries to workers in 2023/24.

Male workers continue to account for the vast majority of fatal injuries, with 95% of workers fatally injured in 2023/24 being men, a similar proportion to earlier years.

Deaths to workers aged 60 and over continue to account for a third of the total (34%) in 2023/24 which indicates an aging workforce.

BFFF urges its members to focus on safety for working at height, workplace transport and let’s not forget asbestos which statistics are off the scale.

https://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/fatals.htm