Enforcement agencies and regulators

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. Local authority environmental health officers (EHOs) generally deal with offices, shops and warehouses as well as leisure centres and some places of entertainment.

Local authorities currently regulate health and safety in around half of business premises in the United Kingdom. The HSE, which is divided into several inspectorates, deals with factories, agriculture, building sites, quarries, mines, schools and colleges, fairgrounds, gas electricity and water systems, hospitals and nursing homes, central and local government premises and nuclear installations.

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 Rail Regulation (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; the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is responsible for aviation safety regulation; the Driving Standards Agency deals with driver training and testing; and the Vehicle and Operator Services Agency (VOSA) deals with vehicle testing.

The Office for Nuclear Regulation was set up as a non-statutory body from 1 April 2011 to regulate the nuclear sector, pending legislation to create a separate statutory body. It has taken over responsibility from the Nuclear Directorate. It is also responsible for regulating the transport of radioactive material.

The Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) regulates employers who supply labour to the fresh produce supply chain including agriculture, horticulture, fish processing, gathering shellfish, dairy farming and packaging or processing food and drink products, via a licensing scheme. In April 2013, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) began consulting on government plans to change the law to amend the scope of GLA licensing, change the size and structure of the GLA Board and on proposals for alternative sanctions that the GLA might use.

The consultation followed a 2011 review of the GLA licensing scheme, undertaken as part of the government’s Red Tape Challenge. This concluded that the most vulnerable workers in the regulated sectors should continue to receive the protection offered by the licensing regime, but recommended “reducing the burden” of inspections and fees on established, compliant businesses. It said that this would free the GLA to focus more closely on the abuse of workers, with an increased commitment to tackling unscrupulous gangmasters committing crimes. The GLA now targets suspected serious and organised crime by working more closely with the Serious Organised Crime Authority, its successor, and other specialist law enforcement agencies. The review also concluded that the GLA needed to have more sanctions available.

However, the TUC said that the scaling back of the GLA’s remit announced in 2012 would reduce protection for many vulnerable workers and make it easier for new gangmasters, including those who have lost licenses previously, to set up without facing proper checks. It added that too great a focus on organised crime could send the signal that routine exploitation will be ignored.

The GLA also carried out a separate consultation on the administration of their licensing arrangements covering changes to the application inspection process, earned recognition, the license renewal process and changes to the public register and active check process. This closed on 22 March 2013.