Annual Report of the Council for 1980

80 Public Analysts in their modern role as Scientific Advisers provide analytical and consultative support for Local Authorities for the many services required by the Ratepayers. The Public Analyst has, therefore, an interest in a very wide range of local authority functions in addition to his traditional statutory responsibility for the safety and quality of food. This Annual Report seeks to illustrate the extent to which those responsibilities have expanded. In spite of the reduced resources currently available, new legislation and proposals continue to be generated, influencing the day to day work of the Public Analyst. The most significant and serious impact on the work of the profession in 1980 has undoubtedly been the reduction in resources and the consequent lowering of levels of protection afforded to the general public. There is no doubt that it is not the generation of legislation which protects the consumer, but the effective enforcement of it. It is ironic that these levels of public protection should be lowered at a time when the attractions to circumvent the 1aw are at their strongest, and the quality of products and systems for their control are most at risk. In orde