LOCAL authorities have been criticised for reducing the priority given to health and safety enforcement.
Statistics released by the Health and Safety Commission last night showed there had been a ten per cent drop nationally in the number of inspections of premises such as hotels and supermarkets.
The report also revealed there were fewer full-time equivalent officers responsible for health and safety than five years ago.
Figures for County Durham, including the Darlington unitary authority, showed that 328 inspections per 1,000 premises were made in the year 2001-02.
Tyne and Wear had 223 visits, Northumberland 240 and North Yorkshire, including the York authority, 139.
A spokesman for North Yorkshire County Council said last night: "We treat health and safety as a higher priority than anything. We're fully staffed in every section relating to health and safety."
The commission said there was a "well-recognised recruitment crisis in local government", particularly regulatory services.
It is directly relevant to environmental health departments, from where most local authority enforcement officers are drawn.
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