§ Mr. John Grantasked the Secretary of State for Employment, if public expenditure cuts have affected or will affect the staffing of the Health and Safety Executive; and, if so, to what extent they concern the committed expansion of the Factory Inspectorate and the frequency of visits, the increasing work on major hazards, local authority planning permission inquiries and the testing of equipment and appliances for safety purposes, the attitude of the inspectorate towards recommended and statutory standards and general recruitment.
§ Mr. Mayhew[pursuant to his reply, 15 February 1980, c. 664]: In the statement on Civil Service manpower cuts made in the House on 6 December 1979 —[Vol. 975, c. 627–40]—it was announced that the annual staff costs of the Health and Safety Executive would be reduced by £2.2 million by 1982–83 (at 1979 survey prices). As a result, the Health and Safety Commission and its Executive are reviewing the allocation of resources to future programmes of work, including those matters mentioned by the hon. Member. It is too soon to say what the outcome of this review will be.