Perth and Kinross Council is one of the the worst local authorities in the UK for food hygiene enforcement.
The council ranked sixth worst in a league of shame that analysed 398 authorities, with Edinburgh City Council Britain’s second worst offender and Falkirk seventh.
Enfield in London was the worst performing council overall, with just 54% of its medium and high-risk businesses meeting hygiene requirements.
The survey conducted by Which? compiled its rankings after looking at the latest data submitted to the Food Standards Agency.
It considered three criteria the proportion of premises ranked as high or medium risk that were compliant with food hygiene requirements; the percentage of premises that had been rated for risk; and the proportion of inspections and other follow-ups that were carried out by local authority inspectors.
A business should be given a risk rating when it opens from A (high risk) to E (low risk).
The ranking is determined by factors such as the type of establishment, how many people it serves and the competence of the management.
The score determines how often the premises are inspected, with the highest-risk sites visited every six months and those considered the lowest risk visited every five years.
Which? executive director Richard Lloyd said he feels councils could do more to clamp down on food hygiene breaches.
“Local authorities should do more to make the best use of limited resources, respond effectively to risks across the food supply chain and ensure consumers are adequately protected wherever they live,” he said.
“Consumers expect local authorities to check that food businesses in their area comply with hygiene standards and rigorously enforce the rules.”
Cherwell was the best local authority on food hygiene enforcement, followed by Brentwood and Broxbourne.
Which? has produced a map which shows all the local authorities and how they are ranked in the UK.
Paula Tabourel, who runs the French restaurant Pig Halle in Perth, said she was “very surprised” at the survey findings.
“I have always found Perth and Kinross Council’s environmental services to be extremely efficient,” she told The Courier.
“At Pig Halle we cook in a traditionally French way so there are a lot of raw products and, if anything, they are tough.
“The standards and paperwork required are very high.
“To be honest, although they (the council) are hard on standards, I have always found them to be fair and just,” she went on.
“Between visits, if we have any questions regarding new legislation or products they are happy to come out and assist.
“They don’t want to nail you they want to help you work efficiently and within the letter of the law.”
Perth and Kinross Council said: “We have confidence that the measures the council uses to monitor our food safety performance demonstrate high levels of public protection in Perth and Kinross.”
Scottish councils’ performance and where they rank in the full 398-authority UK table:
1. North Lanarkshire (42)
2. Orkney Islands (86)
3. North Ayrshire (105)
4. East Lothian (153)
5. Inverclyde (174)
6. Angus (210)
7. East Renfrewshire (213)
8. South Lanarkshire (243)
9. East Ayrshire (244)
10. South Ayrshire (246)
11. Renfrewshire (280)
12. Aberdeen City (281)
13. Dumfries and Galloway (287)
14. Western Isles (294)
15. Shetland Islands (321)
16. Midlothian (325)
17. Scottish Borders (327)
18. West Lothian (328)
19. Aberdeenshire (330)
20. Stirling (337)
21. Fife (346)
22. Clackmannanshire (349)
23. Highland (352)
24. East Dunbartonshire (359)
25. Dundee City (366)
26. Moray (369)
27. City of Glasgow (373)
28. West Dunbartonshire (376)
29. Argyll and Bute (385)
30. Falkirk (392)
31. Perth and Kinross (393)
32. City of Edinburgh (397)