The UK’s regulatory bodies are facing workforce shortages because of a significant increase in responsibilities as a result of the country leaving the EU, the National Audit Office has warned.
A new report from the parliamentary watchdog has explored the impact of Brexit on three regulators: the Food Standards Agency (FSA), the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA), and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
It found that all three regulators are struggling to recruit the specialist skills needed in some areas, with HSE anticipating at least four years before it reaches the full capacity it has planned for its post-EU exit regulatory regime.
Cllr Nesil Caliskan, Chair of the LGA’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said the NAO report mirrored warnings the LGA issued during the pandemic and since, about the lack of professional capacity in key professions, such as environmental health and trading standards.
She added: “With the expansion of capacity needed in national regulators, there is an increased risk that councils’ regulatory services, which are already stretched, will be damaged further as the local professional workforce is recruited into national roles.
“It is therefore essential that the Government ensures the right resources and support is supplied to train up the next generation of officers across the full regulatory system, to protect the future of these important roles.”
