Foodlaw-Reading
Dr David Jukes, The University of Reading, UK
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Office for Health Improvement & Disparities Consultation outcome, 6 February 2024
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Consultation outcome Government response to the consultation on proposed legislative reforms in relation to nutrition and health claims on food This document is available as a webpage on the government website (click on image). |
The Consultation Outcome concludes with the following information:
Next steps
Following the publication of this consultation response, the government will:
Legislative changes
The power to make NLCS legislation is devolved to the Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive. This is set out in the respective devolution settlements (Scotland Act 1998, Government of Wales Acts 1998 and 2006, and Northern Ireland Act 1998). This means the appropriate authorities in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can make regulations on NLCS within their respective jurisdictions.
To introduce improvement notices in England, the government intends to use powers in the Food Safety Act 1990, for England only, to make regulations to amend the Nutrition and Health Claims (England) Regulations 2007 to enable improvement notices to be issued for non compliance with nutrition and health claims legislation as an alternative to criminal prosecution (and make related provision).The government will provide 3 months’ notice between legislating and implementation. The government’s intention is to lay a statutory instrument early in 2024, to come into force in October 2024 in line with common commencement dates.
The government intends to make regulations under the powers in the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Act 2023 to revoke 60 pieces of tertiary legislation which authorised or rejected health claims. The extent of this instrument will be Great Britain-wide and subject to the consent of governments in Scotland and Wales. If such consent is given, then we would plan that the regulations would come into force in 2024.
The Welsh Government published a separate 8-week consultation (from 20 September to 15 November 2023) to seek views on proposals to introduce an improvement notice regime for nutrition and health claims in Wales in parallel with England. Improvement notices will come into force in Wales within a similar timeframe as in England.
Food Standards Scotland issued an 8-week public consultation from 21 October to 16 December 2022 on proposals to introduce a new compliance notice for breaches of food standards in Scotland. Scotland laid The Food (Scotland) Act 2015 (Compliance Notices) Regulations 2023 in Parliament on 25 May 2023, which came into force on 30 June 2023.
Northern Ireland continues to have full participation in risk assessment and risk management processes concerning NLCS policy, including proposed amendments to legislation. With a restored Northern Ireland Executive, ministers in Northern Ireland will be able to bring forward similar changes to enforcement provisions relating to the introduction of improvement notices for nutrition and health claims, if they choose to do so.
For the previous news item on this topic, see:
Update: The Regulations for England were published on the 21 February 2024. See:
