COT welcomes new members

The UK's Food Standards Agency and its Chief Medical Officer have appointed three new specialist members to the Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment.

The COT group is an independent scientific committee that provides advice to British government departments on the toxicity of chemicals that may be found in foods. The committee recently issued advice on the possible risks to specific population groups from the high levels of mercury found in certain fish.

The new members are Professor Alan Boobis, professor of Biochemical Pharmacology at Imperial College, London, Dr Joy Hinson, reader of Molecular and Cellular Endocrinology, Barts and The London and professor David Ray (Head of Applied Neuroscience Group, University of Nottingham Medical School)

The new members have been appointed with effect from 1 April 2003.

Professor Boobis has more than 12 years' experience of scientific advisory committee work at both a national and international level and was a member of the FAO/WHO Joint Expert Committee on Food Additives and Joint Meeting on Pesticides Residues. He has also been appointed as a member of COT's sister committee, the Committee on the Carcinogenicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment.

Dr Hinson is internationally recognised in the field of adrenocortical endocrinology while Professor Ray is an expert in neurotoxicology. Professor Ray was recently a member of the Defra's Veterinary Products Committee and is currently on the Ministry of Defence Independent Panel on Gulf War Veterans Illnesses.