§ Mr. LawsTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what his estimate is of the level of public confidence in the Government's arrangements for food safety measured by public opinion surveys in each year since 1997–98; and if he will make a statement. [69086]
§ Ms Blears[holding answer 11 July 2002]The Food Standards Agency (FSA) has had responsibility for food safety since its establishment in April 2000. Levels of public confidence have been measured quantitatively rather than estimated as part of the annual "Consumer Attitudes to Food Standards", published in January 2001 and February 2002. In the most recent survey, 71 per cent, of consumers are aware of the FSA and, among them, levels of trust are high approximately 80 per cent. When asked how confident they were about the role played by the FSA in protecting health with regard to food safety, only 13 per cent, of consumers stated that they were not confident. Both surveys were widely reported by national media and are freely available on the Agency's website. The next annual survey will be published in early 2003. There were no similar surveys or estimates of public confidence by the Ministry for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, now the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, before 2000.