Crown immunity

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Under the HSWA, Crown bodies must comply with health and safety law. However, the provisions of the Act that allow inspectors to prosecute employers for breaches of the law do not apply to Crown bodies. This is known as Crown immunity.

Crown bodies are organisations that act on behalf of the Queen. The public and commercial services PCS union explains that with on-going changes to the Civil Service, it is increasingly difficult to come to a strict definition of what is meant by “the Crown”.

The HSE will look at each particular case as it arises before finally deciding whether the employer is covered by Crown Immunity.

All core Departments within the Civil Service are likely to enjoy Crown Immunity, but some Agencies will no longer be protected in this way.

There is more information on Crown immunity on the PCS website.

The CMCHA 2007 largely removed Crown immunity for corporate manslaughter. However, Crown immunity remains for health and safety offences. Unions whose members work for Crown bodies want the government to abolish Crown immunity completely.

In April 2016, the parliamentary Defence Committee published a report, Beyond endurance? Military exercises and the duty of care, which called for the Ministry of Defence to be subject to corporate manslaughter charges without exemption. The report can be found on the parliament website.