Lewis G. Grant
President of VPHA, UK
Title: Current and future Delivery Models for the Provision of OV Services in the Meat Industry in Great Britain
Biography
Biography: Lewis G. Grant
Abstract
Article 5 of EC 882/2004 permits a Member State’s Competent Authority to delegate certain inspection tasks to accredited organisations referred to as Control Bodies. These organisations are privately operated and deliver inspection and verification tasks on behalf of the Competent Authority and whilst they operate at ‘arm’s length’ they are only permitted to deliver these tasks as directed by the policy set by the Competent Authority. In order to provide assurance that the Control Body is operating in accordance with the policies laid down by the Competent Authority, independent audits are carried out that provide the necessary governance and oversight a Competent Authority requires. The legislation only permits those organisations that are accredited to the ISO Standard 17020 to be designated as Control Bodies. This accreditation is provided for by the Member State’s own accrediting Competent Authority – in the UK this is fulfilled by the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS). The ISO 17020 Standard is designed to ensure that accredited ‘inspection bodies’ have the necessary ability, capability, quality and governance to deliver a fully functional, effective and independent inspection and verification service on behalf of the Competent Authority. A Competent Authority can use the Control Body model to fulfil a number of different tasks and functions but in essence it permits a Competent Authority to take a step back from the day to day delivery aspects of inspection and verification which can then be delegated within the permitted scope of the legislation so that it can focus on policy formation and audit.