Cover Paper
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Skip the menu of subheadings on this page.This is a paper for discussion. This does not represent the views of the Committee and should not be cited.
Background
1. Annex A contains the draft text of the COT section of the 2024 Annual report for the Committees on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment.
2. Members are invited to comment on Annex A and consider how the COT has performed during 2024 against the Good Practice Guidelines for committees advising the Food Standards Agency (FSA)- Annex 4 to the Annual report. For easy reference the link is given below:
3. Please send any minor editorial comments on the Annual report directly to the Secretariat.
4. Members are also asked to check that employment details and interests have been recorded correctly on the new Register of Interest page. In line with FSA policy and established good practice for accessing external expertise, Scientific Advisory Committee members are required to declare any personal or non-personal interests which represent a real or potential conflict in respect of general or specific aspects of work undertaken. Interests will be managed in accordance with the FSA’s policy and guidance.
5. As Members are aware, the Annual report is accompanied by a number of annexes.
1. The terms of reference.
2. Code of Conduct.
3. Openness policy.
4. Good Practice agreement for Scientific Committees.
5. Glossary of terms.
6. Index to subjects considered in previous COC/M/T Annual reports.
6. As Members are aware, the COT Terms of Reference and Code of Practice (Annexes 1, 2 and 4) have been updated in recent years, but no changes have been made in 2024.
7. The glossary (Annex 5) has not been updated, but Members are invited to review the contents and make any suggestions for amendment on new inclusions to the Secretariat. Glossary This is also on the website as a standalone section.
8. The index (Annex 6) is currently in progress. The previous versions do not meet accessibility standards and are being overhauled. This is time consuming, but this will go on the website as a standalone document and will be in a much more useful format when complete. A preliminary index is currently available going as far as 2022.
Questions for the Committee
Members are invited to consider the following questions/comments and to raise any other matters.
i) Do Members have any comments on the text of the report in Annex A?
ii) Members are invited to comment on the extent to which COT evaluations in 2024 have complied with the Good Practice Guidelines in Annex 4, and if appropriate to make suggestions for future improvements
Secretariat January 2025