Trading Standards Service Performance Report 2023 to 2024
Contributing to Public Health and Wellbeing
- work has continued on Operation CeCe in conjunction with HMRC and other regional Trading Standards partners, looking into the supply of counterfeit and illicit tobacco across the region. This work has led directly to the seizure of almost 100,000 cigarettes and the closure of 8 premises within the Borough, each for a 3-month period, under the Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014
- throughout the year, officers have carried out regular underage sales test purchase exercises with young volunteers. This is to check whether shops are selling age restricted products such as alcohol, cigarettes, vapes and fireworks, to underage children. There were 9 positive sales from a total of 59 attempts, giving a failure rate of 15%. As a result, 2 simple cautions were issued to traders with regard to the underage sale of vapes and on another occasion the sale of illicit vape to a child volunteer was used as evidence to help secure a 3-month closure order against a shop in Billingham
- throughout the year, officers have carried out regular underage sales test purchase exercises with young volunteers, to check whether shops are selling age restricted products such as alcohol, cigarettes, vapes and fireworks to underage children. There were 8 positive sales from a total of 34 attempts, giving a failure rate of 24%. As a result, 2 simple cautions have been issued to traders with regard to the sale of vapes to children and on another occasion the sale of illicit tobacco to a child volunteer was used as evidence to help secure a 3 month closure order against a shop in Thornaby
- the service has once again participated in the Food Standards Agency's regional animal feed hygiene inspection and sampling programme. This work helps ensure that local farms and animal feed establishments are complying with regulations to protect the safety of animal feed and hence the onward integrity of the human food chain
- a significant amount of work was undertaken during the year, looking at the safety of disposable vaping devices on sale within the Borough. Many were found on sale without the necessary approval from the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency and contained over the permitted limit of 2ml liquid and 2% nicotine. Many also lacked the required safety information. In total almost 5,000 non-compliant vapes were seized
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