The CIEH and the CTSI (Chartered Trading Standards Institute) have jointly written to Minister of State at DLUHC, Kemi Badenoch MP warning that a shortfall of qualified officers could critically affect frontline Local Authority regulatory services that protect the public and ensure safe housing food and products for consumers as well as providing environmental protection.

The letter points out that essential environmental health services "will begin to crumble" without proper Govt support and registers disappointment that bursaries for Regulatory Compliance Officer (RCO) apprenticeships are not being delivered despite being recommended by the Govt itself in the 2021 Cross Govt Regulatory Review set up at Cabinet direction.

Surveys show that EHO numbers have fallen 32% since 2009, 4 out of 5 english Local Authorities are using agency staff to make up EHO rosters and 52% of Local Authorities had not a single EHO trainee or apprentice in place during 2019/20.