Agenda and minutes

There were no apologies.

There were no declarations of interest.

It was confirm that all items of business would be considered in public.

The minutes of the meeting held on 17 February 2010 were agreed as a record and signed by the Chairman subject to the following correction:

Item 6 – Witness Session Illegal cosmetics and Illegally Imported Foods – Border Controls and Wholesale/Retail - The secure email system for information sharing had been set up in Trading Standards by the Council, and not as indicated in the minutes by Trading Standards.  

Officers handed out a schedule of Heathrow freight seizures by the United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) of Products of Animal Origin (POAO) for the period of February to 15 March 2010. This showed that:

• Port Health accounted for 50% to 60% of the total weight of POAOs seized by UKBA at Heathrow in freight
• The number of seizures had risen considerably in comparison to the same period in 2009, but there had been a reduction in the  overall weight amount
• The reduction in the weight amount indicated that more attempt was being made to export smaller weights, with the assumption that smaller weights would get through, as they would be less obvious and harder to detect

It was noted that an additional member of staff had been allocated to the Freight Team, to assist in increasing the detection of POAOs.

Members discussed the draft recommendations. Updates and additional comments were made in respect of the following:

Recommendation 2 – Officers advised that work had begun in setting the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU); a secure email system for information sharing with other agencies.

Recommendation 4 – Officers were asked to find out whether resources could be sourced from Defra, to support more joint operations.

Recommendation 5 – That the ‘Scores on Doors’ for premises where food is prepared for public consumption should be publicised following an inspection. Telephone numbers and email addresses should also be advertised for members of the public to report concerns relating to any premises.

The Committee agreed for the final report and revised recommendations to be circulated to members for their comments and for the Chairman to approve the final report once all the amendments had been made.

The Chairman thanked officers, on behalf of the Committee for all their effort and work in the completing this review.

Resolved that:

1. The draft recommendations be agreed as follows:

                                i.            The Committee recognises the efforts made by Council and UKBA Officers to tackle illegal goods being sold in the Borough and recommends that a public information campaign be launched to raise residents’ awareness of how to identify illegally imported cosmetic and food and of reporting procedures.

                              ii.            The Committee is of the view that closer working between our partner agencies (e.g. Trading Standards, UKBA and Port Health) is essential.  The Committee therefore recommends that, as a matter of urgency a clear, accountable and robust Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) or protocol be set up between the agencies in order to exchange information freely and securely and that a joint database of offending exporters be developed.

                                i.            The Committee recommends that IT systems used by Port Health offices at Heathrow Airport are available to officers 24 hours a day, and to ensure continuity, Members requested back up systems to be provided to support the critical process of information exchange.

                              ii.            The Committee recommends that Officers make efforts to identify external funding in support of additional joint operations.

                            iii.            The Committee recommends that information about the ‘Score on Doors’ scheme to be  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.

The Committee considered extracts of items in the Forward Plan for the Cabinet meeting on 18 March 2010. Members noted that the CCTV Maintenance Contract expired in March 2010 and hoped that the new contract ensures that the maintenance covered all eventualities, particularly in respect of technical advances.

Members expressed an interest in receiving copies of the Quarterly Planning Obligations Monitoring report for Quarter 4 due to be reported to the Cabinet Meeting on 24 June 2010, to see how S106 monies had been spent.

The Chairman expressed sincere thanks, on behalf of the Committee, to Councillor Kay Willmot-Denbeigh for all her work and support as former Chairman of the RESPOC.

The Committee confirmed that meeting for the 13 April 2010 had been cancelled.