SCOTLAND'S ability to cope with large-scale outbreaks of deadly diseases and infections is being undermined by cuts to council budgets, it has been claimed.
The Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland (REHIS) has warned that ongoing redundancies among environmental health and food safety departments will have a "serious and long-term impact" on attempts to deal with diseases such as E.coli and new forms of flu.
A survey by the institute found there are 50 fewer Environmental Health Officers (EHOs) employed at Scottish local authorities than three years ago. The number of Food Safety Officers (FSOs) has fallen by over 20% in the same time.
Both groups of workers are on the front line when it comes to public health, and experts say any further cuts to their numbers will leave Scotland unprepared in the face of a major health scare.
Tom Bell, chief executive of REHIS, said: "We are acutely aware that every public service has been under scrutiny for some time now, however our concerns are the implications for public health if the numbers of professional staff, who protect our communities and businesses not only through the regulation, inspection and prosecution of environmental health matters but also using advice and education, continue to fall.
"Our further concerns are that many of the jobs that are disappearing were held by those with the most knowledge and experience built up over many years and who likely had the highest cost attached to them.
"From a simple financial perspective this may seem logical, however, paradoxically, cutting back on highly trained and experienced EHOs could increase the requirement for their expertise. Reducing the numbers of EHOs and FSOs can only have a negative impact on how public and environmental health issues are controlled."
According to figures obtained by the REHIS using Freedom of Information legislation, the number of EHOs employed by Scottish local authorities fell from 556 in March 2009 to 506 in September last year. At the same time the number of FSOs dropped from 105 to 84.
A spokesman for the local authority umbrella organisation Cosla said all Scotland's councils were facing constraints in spending.
A Scottish Government spokesman said: "The Food Standards Agency in Scotland is committed to improving food safety and standards in Scotland and to protecting the health of Scotland's population in relation to food."
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