Lord ClintonDaviesasked Her Majesty's Government:
What is the position concerning staff shortages at Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution and to what extent such staff shortages affect the monitoring of disposal of radioactive waste.
§ Lord HeskethThere are currently 215 staff in post in Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Pollution compared with 148 when HMIP was established in April 1987 and 193 a year ago. The staff complement has recently been increased further to 250. HMIP has 35 vacancies within the increased complement of which 26 are for professional staff covering the range of HMIP's activities. Eight of the professional vacancies are reserved for successful candidates from the current recruitment competition. We are continuing to recruit actively to fill the remaining posts.
Information on inspection activity is recorded in HMIP's MINIS returns. For 1989–90, visits in connection with the Inspectorate's regulatory responsibilities for radioactive substances totalled 865 compared with a target of 950. A full account of the year's activity will be given in the MINIS 11 return which will be published in due course. HMIP is satisfied that, under the current programme of 1108WA inspections, the controls are sufficient to ensure public safety. Priority is given to major nuclear installations and large users of radioactivity such as major hospitals.