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The
HSC have published a number of documents that are
helpful in explaining its view on how it should go
about ensuring that duty holders comply with the law
and on whether the law needs to be changed.
Compliance
and Enforcement
One of the key issues concerns whether or not the
HSC are moving towards a more advice orientated approach
that uses less formal enforcement (i.e. inspections,
investigations, use of notices and prosecution). There
appeared to be some suggestion in the recent HSC Strategy
'2010 and Beyond', in HSC's evidence to a recent Select
Committee (2004) and in a paper by the Deputy Director
General that such a shift was taking place. However,
the HSC deny this.
| HSC
Documents |
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HSC
Consultation on a New Intervention Strategy
The HSC published a document setting out 13
"Intervention Strategies" and asked
"with the resources at our disposal which
technique to use where, and what to give priority
to so that we make the greatest impact."
|
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HSC's
Strategy 2010 and Beyond
This is HSC's new strategy published in the summer
of 2004.
| "Acceptable
health and safety standards can be achieved
in many ways and much of this strategy focuses
on new ways relevant to our interventions
strategy." (p.11) |
|
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HSC's
evidence to the Select Committee of the Department
of Work and Pensions, Feb, 2004
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HSC's
Enforcement Policy Statement
This sets out general principles that HSE inspectors
should use when determining the use of their
powers. It also sets out the circumstances when
prosecutions should be expected or considered.
To
read more about the HSC's prosecution policy,
click
here
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Paper
to the Commission, Justin McCracken, Deputy Director
General, Health and Safety Executive, Sept 2003
| "In
terms of the balance of our efforts we want
to put more emphasis on the "educate
and influence" aspects of our work,
and the working in partnership with others
(at all levels) who can help to achieve
the improvements in health and safety performance
for which we strive.Encouraging our staff
to use their authority and experience more
on these activities means using a smaller
proportion of our total front line resource
for the inspection and enforcement aspects
of our work. " |
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Paper
to the Commission by Brian Etheridge on "Becoming
a Modern Regulator", March 2004
Whilst
this paper does not set out current HSC and HSE
policy, it is significant in indicating what the
HSC/E is thinking and what are the possible changes
and appears in part to be a response to the
Hampton
Review
"The
strategy sets out a vision for health and
safety – a world in which health and
safety is a cornerstone of a civilised society.
We have said this means that, in ten years
time, the regulators will no longer be the
principal drivers for improvement. This
is a natural and logical extension of our
vision. (para4)
"In recent years, there has been deregulatory
pressure from within government to reduce
burdens on business, be clearer about the
benefits of regulation, and more sympathetic
to business needs.(para 11)
What might HSE do to lead the debate? Should
we explore the limits of the regulator-regulated
relationship? The relationship is based
on a mechanism to ensure compliance with
a standard set out in legislation rather
than a joint enterprise to improve health
and safety standards. A number of questions
flow from such an examination:
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is
compliance with the law a limited
ambition and enforcement a tool that
will become increasingly redundant? |
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is
the regulator/regulated relationship
a barrier to joint problem solving?
We have signalled in our strategy
that we will not turn automatically
to new legislation to deal with new
problems. Does this mean that we could
look to rely on negotiated agreements
rather than inflexible standards expressed
in regulations? |
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how
far can we push the agenda of earned
autonomy and should there be penalties
for breaking the deal rather than
breaking the law and what role might
other formsof accreditation play? |
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should
we reopen and push the debate about
alternative penalties and restorative
justice? (para 21) |
|
To
download a further document on what the HSC
think about the Hampton Review,
click here (PDF)
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HSC
Statement on the Provision of Advice, Sept 2004
"This
is not about reordering the balance of advisory
and enforcement roles, it’s about making
them more effective. We want to improve
the targeting of both to improve the effectiveness
of the advisory role and to allow us to
continue to be tough on those who wilfully
disregard the law. We want the information
and guidance we provide to businesses to
be as helpful and as specific as possible,
and for business to be clear about what
it needs to do to comply with the law. (para
4)
The challenge is to provide support that
is authoritative, proportionate and cost
effective without compromising HSE’s
or LAs’ roles as enforcers, or duty
holders’ full ownership of their legal
responsibilities. (para 9) |
The HSC is considering the possibility of seperating
out advice functions from enforcement. To read
specifically what the HSC say about this, click
here. To download an HSC paper on HSE's advisory
Services, click
here. |
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Paper
given by Bill Callaghan, HSC Chair at TUC conference,
Nov 2004
There
has been much misunderstanding of the role
of enforcement in our strategy. Obviously
Robens had the same problem because he says
tartly in one place “We are not advocating
a slacker approach”. I want to say
exactly the same thing.
I have always seen good regulation as a
force for good and I am saddened that the
Select Committee should allege that we are
proposing a shift of resources away from
inspection and enforcement. Let me use this
platform to say categorically that no such
proposal has ever been presented to the
Commission and if it had, I’m confident
that it would have been rejected. |
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| CCA
and other documents |
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Making
Companies Safe: What Works
Report by CCA, September 2004 |
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CCA
Evidence to the Select Committee |
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Papers
given at Nov 2004 TUC Conference on the Health
and Safety Commission
Brendan
Barber, TUC Chair
Kevin
Curran, T&G General Secretary
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Legislative
Change
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In
its Strategy Statement, (see above) the HSC stated
| We
do not see new regulation as the automatic
response to new issues or changing circumstances
but we will continue to press for higher
fines, a new law on corporate killing and
the removal of Crown immunity." (p.11) |
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Directors
Duties
Read about why the HSC decided not to propose
legislation in this area |
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