§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many factory inspectors are now employed.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerOn 1st November 1974 there were 746 factory inspectors in post. This total comprised 557 general inspectors, 146 specialist inspectors and 44 assistant inspectors.
§ Mr. McCrindleasked the Secretary of State for Employment what proportion of factories is visited by factory inspectors annually.
§ Mr. Harold WalkerDuring 1973, 17.2 per cent of workplaces which come within the scope of the Factories Act received a general inspection. Corresponding figures for previous years were:— 1972: 22.4 per cent, 1971: 28.6 per cent and 1970: 30.9 per cent. The figures reflect the change from cyclical to selective inspection, initiated in 1971 and advocated by the Robens Committee in its report published in 1972.
The number of general inspections in 1973 was 35,500, in addition to which there were about 119,000 other inspections.