§ Mr. CryerTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many prosecutions have been brought 629W under the Health and Safety at Work, etc. Act 1974 and associated legislation in England and Wales in each year from 1982 to 1988; and if any estimate has been made of the inspection days saved if all proceedings had been conducted by the Crown Prosecution Service.
§ Mr. Nicholls[holding answer 23 January 1989]The figures requested are given in the table.
Number of informations laid by Her Majesty's Factory and Agricultural Inspectorates and local authorities England and Wales4 Year Factory and Agricultural Inspectorates Local Authorities 1982 2,099 3468 1983 1,971 3511 1984 1,978 3585 1985 1,898 394 I986–872 1,892 560 1987–8812 2,103 .. ..=not available. 1 Provisional 2 Year commencing 1 April. 3 Informations laid relate to Great Britain.Data for England and Wales alone is not readily available. 4 Data for the small number of prosecutions taken by other enforcing authorities is not readily available. No estimate has been made of the effects of proceedings being conducted by the Crown Prosecution Service. Since health and safety cases are frequently highly technical, and the expertise of HSE inspectors is required to explain them to the court, it is highly unlikely that many inspector days would be saved.