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Enforcement agencies and regulators
[ch 2: pages 24-27]The HSE and local authority environmental health departments are responsible for enforcing most health and safety legislation in workplaces. The appropriate enforcement authority depends on the type of workplace, as set out in the Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations 1998.
The HSE is responsible for enforcing work-related health and safety legislation in:
• factories and other manufacturing premises, including some motor vehicle repair;
• chemical plants and refineries;
• construction;
• mines, quarries and landfill sites;
• farms, agriculture and forestry;
• hospitals, including nursing homes subject to the Care Quality Commission (CQC’s) lead for health and safety incidents where users of services have been harmed;
• local government, including their offices and facilities run by them;
• schools, colleges and universities;
• domestic gas installation, maintenance or repair;
• utilities, including power generation, water and waste;
• fairgrounds (travelling or fixed);
• airports (except terminal buildings, car parks and office buildings);
• police and fire authorities;
• Crown bodies, including the Ministry of Defence;
• prisons;
• docks;
• offshore gas and oil installations, emerging energy technologies and associated activities, including pipe-laying barges, and diving support vessels;
• onshore major hazards, including pipelines, gas transmission and distribution;
• manufacture, transport, handling and security of explosives; and
• common parts of domestic premises.
Health and Safety Executive (HSE) Business Plan 2016-17
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will receive less year-on-year funding from central government over the next four years. This year, it will receive £141 million from the government, along with £94 million in income from Fee for Intervention (FFI) (see page 32) for example. Government funding will fall to £135.6 million in 2017/18, to £128.4 million in 2018/19 and to £123.4 million in 2019/20. Over the end of the current spending review period and by the end of the current parliament, the government will have cut the HSE’s funding by 12.4%. This cut, compared with the £231 million funding the HSE received in 2009/10, the last year of the previous Labour government, is a massive 47%.
In response, the HSE says in its 2016/17 business plan that it will seek to maintain current levels of its core regulatory activities, including permissioning, inspection, investigation and enforcement and makes reference to “proportionate enforcement action”. It also says that its priorities for 2016/17 include work-related ill health. (Permissioning is where the start or continuation of particular work activities, involving significant hazards, risks or public concern, are conditional upon a consent, licence, letter of conclusion or acceptance of a safety case or safety report by the health and safety regulator).
But TUC head of health and safety Hugh Robertson questioned how the safety watchdog will achieve this with the current number of inspectors and “an almost complete lack of any inspections in the local authority sector.” “The less the HSE can do on enforcement, the more employers will be able to get away with breaking the law, and breaking their workers.” he said. On work-related ill health, Robertson pointed out that there are no proposals for any new regulations in the areas responsible for 70% of work-related sickness absence (stress and MSDs).
In May 2016, Martin Temple took over from Judith Hackitt as HSE chair, while she replaced him as chair of the manufacturing employers’ organisation EEF.
Local authority environmental health officers (EHOs) generally deal with offices, shops and warehouses, as well as leisure centres and some places of entertainment. Councils are responsible for enforcing health and safety in around a million workplaces, employing around half the British workforce.
In England and Wales, local authorities enforce the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA) in respect of premises including:
• shops and retailing, including market stalls, coin-operated launderettes, and mobile vendors;
• most office-based activities;
• some wholesale and retail warehouses;
• hotels, guest houses, hostels, caravan and camping sites, restaurants, public houses and other licensed premises;
• leisure and entertainment, including night clubs, cinemas, social clubs, circuses, sports facilities, health clubs, gyms, riding schools, racecourses, pleasure boat hire, motor-racing circuits, museums, theatres, art galleries and exhibition centres;
• places of worship and undertakers;
• animal care, including zoos, livery stables and kennels;
• therapeutic and beauty services, including massage, saunas, solariums, tattooing, skin and body piercing, and hairdressing;
• residential care homes subject to CQC’s lead for health and safety incidents where users of services have been harmed; and
• privately-run pre-school child care, e.g. nurseries.
Other enforcement agencies are responsible for particular areas of health and safety and they often work together. For example, the police will be involved in investigations into road traffic accidents (RTAs) and work-related deaths where there is an indication of manslaughter, or another serious general criminal offence.
The Office of Road and Rail (ORR) deals with railway safety, and local fire and rescue authorities enforce fire safety legislation in most workplaces. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency enforces marine safety and the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is responsible for aviation safety regulation.
The Driving and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA) sets standards for driving and motorcycling, and ensures that drivers, vehicle operators and MOT garages understand and follow roadworthiness standards. It also provides a range of licensing, testing, education and enforcement services. The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) regulates the nuclear sector and is responsible for regulating the transport of radioactive material.