Posted By Bill Fisher Iain Martin is unavailable over the next few days so I have picked up your enquiry. As it is never the Moderators' intention to edit or sanitise postings - our role is about ensuring the AUGs and "good order" are followed on these professional Forums - I would invite you to post the full response you received as a 'Response' on this Thread (rather than start a new Thread). As you indicate 'Chartered Status' discussion is a matter for the Members' Forums and anyone responding to your posting should remain aware of this. If anyone was to attempt to open a discussion or make specific comment on this subject then their posting will be removed. Should others follow then the Moderators will consider locking the Thread, thus allowing the response to remain in view alone. Regards Bill Fisher (Moderator)

Posted By Iain. Taylor Thank you for your email of 23 January to Anne McGuire regarding chartered status for health and safety practitioners. I am sorry that Mrs McGuire has not been able to reply to you personally, but I hope you will understand that she receives a great deal of correspondence on a variety of subjects and it is not possible for her to reply to each letter individually. I have been asked to reply on this occasion. In her reply to Tim Boswell MP, the Minister supported the Institution of Occupational Health and Safety’s (IOSH) move to introduce chartered status as a means by which its members’ competence can be enhanced. However, the Minister did not say that chartered status was the only way in which competence in health and safety could be demonstrated. The Minister recognises that health and safety is a broad field and that different skills are needed for different parts of it. However, I am sure you would agree it is appropriate for the Government to encourage any professional body wishing to improve the competence of its membership for the benefit of the working population. If any of the bodies you mention should seek to improve the levels of competence of their membership, I am sure they will find the Minister equally supportive. Yours sincerely Patrick Frith Ministerial Correspondence Unit