Health and Safety (Hansard, 2 December 1988)

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list in theOfficial Report the total 431W number of registered workplaces, the total number of employers and the number of factory inspectors who inspect workplaces for each Health and Safety Executive area for the years 1974 to 1987 inclusive.

§ Mr. Nicholls
The information is not available in the form requested.
The Health and Safety Executive does not hold information on the number of workplaces registered with the factory inspectorate for the years 1974 to 1977. The number of registered fixed premises for the years 1978 to 1987 is as follows:

Date Number of Premises

1 January 1978 280,716

1 January 1979 300,718

1 January 1980 309,915

1 January 1981 309,100

¹1 January 1982 576,456

1 January 1983 468,609

1 January 1984 393,237

31 March 1985 395,860

Area 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987

South West 32.0 30.0 28.0 27.0 26.0 26.0 26.0 29.0

South 30.0 28.0 27.0 27.0 29.0 26.0 27.5 27.5

South East 25.0 25.0 25.0 23.0 22.0 25.0 24.0 26.5

London North West¹ 30.0 26.0 24.0 22.0 21.0 — — —

London North 25.0 23.0 22.0 22.0 20.0 36.0 35.5 36.0

London South 30.0 37.0 34.0 32.0 28.0 40.0 35.0 34.0

East Anglia 24.5 25.5 27.0 26.0 25.0 24.5 25.0 21.5

Northern Home Counties 26.0 21.0 20.0 19.0 20.0 22.0 23.0 24.5

East Midlands 29.0 26.0 24.0 23.0 23.0 23.0 25.0 26.0

West Midlands 44.0 44.0 40.0 37.0 33.0 32.0 32.0 32.0

Wales 33.0 31.0 29.0 23.0 23.0 23.0 25.0 26.0

Marches 28.0 27.0 25.0 23.0 22.0 24.0 25.5 23.5

North Midlands 31.0 30.0 29.0 26.0 25.0 27.0 23.0 23.0

South Yorkshire 33.0 31.0 28.0 29.5 29.0 27.0 24.5 24.0

West and North Yorkshire 37.0 35.0 29.0 31.0 29.0 35.5 33.5 31.5

Greater Manchester 34.5 34.5 33.0 33.0 32.0 33.5 28.5 30.5

Merseyside 29.0 28.0 26.0 25.0 27.0 25.0 26.0 25.0

North West 26.5 30.5 28.0 27.0 25.0 28.0 24.0 23.0

North East 38.0 37.0 33.0 32.0 31.0 31.0 30.0 31.0

Scotland East 33.0 31.0 32.0 27.0 25.0 26.0 23.0 23.0

Scotland West 34.0 33.0 30.0 28.0 26.0 27.0 25.0 25.0

¹ The London north-west office is no longer regarded as a separate area office. Factory inspectors located there are outstationed from the London, north or London, south area offices.

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list(a) the number of prosecutions and (b) the average fine under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act for the years 1974 to 1987 inclusive.

year Informations laid Convictions obtained Average fine per conviction (£)

^{1 2}All ³FAID ⁴FI ^{1 2}All ³FAID ⁴FI ^{1 2}All ³FAID ⁴FI

1975 2,956 2,732 81

1976 2,174 2,010 94

1977 2,814 2,546 105

1978 2,603 2,364 134

1979 2,427 2,227 184

1980 2,624 2,416 180

1981 1,892 1,654 189

1982 2,342 2,057 233

1983 2,238 1,941 252

1984 2,209 1,944 313

1985 2,231 1,915 436

1986 (January to March)⁵ 541 467 438

1986–87⁶ 2,199 1,771 410

1987–8⁶ 2,322 2,002 ⁷794

¹ Data include prosecutions taken by factory and agricultural inspectorates, explosives inspectorate, Her Majesty's mines and quarries inspectorate, nuclear installations inspectorate, railway inspectorate and the petroleum engineering division of the Department of Energy.

432W

Date Number of Premises

31 March 1986 399,885

31 March 1987 401,815

¹ The figure for 1982 is the first of those produced from a computerised database which was based on the Department of Employment census. The database was initially inflated by premises for which the Health and Safety Executive was not the enforcing authority and accounts for the high figures in 1982 and 1983.

Figures for the total number of registered fixed premises in each HSE area for the years 1978 to 1987 are not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Figures for the total number of employers for the years 1974 to 1987 inclusive are not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
Figures for the number of factory inspectors who inspect workplaces for each HSE area between 1974 and 1979 could only be obtained at disproportionate cost. The number of factory inspectors employed in each HSE area on 1 April each year between 1980 and 1987 is as follows:

§ Mr. Nicholls
The table shows the available information.
433W
² All figures exclude the results of prosecutions taken by local authorities. The latest information for local authorities (LAs) relates to 1986–87. for which we know of about 390 informations laid under the Health and Safety at Work Act, and 233 under other associated legislation. For 1986–87 the number of convictions was about 530 in total. No information is collected on the average fine.
³ Factory and agricultural inspectorates only.
⁴ Factory inspectorate only.
⁵ Data for the period 1 January 1986 to 31 March 1986.
⁶ Data for the year commencing 1 April 1986 and provisional data for the year commencing 1 April 1987.
⁷ The average includes fines of £500,000 and £250,000 against BP following three fatal accidents. Without these convictions the average fine would have been £420.

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how many cases were taken, under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act, to the Crown courts during 1987; and what was the average fine.

§ Mr. Nicholls
The following table gives the available information for the year commencing 1 April 1987.

Proceedings instituted by the Health and Saftey Executive's factory and agricultural inspectorates, 1987–88

Number

Informations laid ¹30

Convictions obtained 19

Average fine per conviction (£) ²41,224

¹ These figures are for HSE inspectors only.

Information on prosecutions could not be obtained without incurring disproportionate cost.
² The average includes fines of £500,000 and £250,000 against BP following three fatal accidents. Without these convictions the average fine would have been £1,956.

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list(a) the total number and (b) the total number of resignations of factory inspectors for the years 1974 to 1987 inclusive.

§ Mr. Nicholls
Figures for the number of factory inspectors in post in HSE are only available from 1 July 1975 and details for resignations only readily available from 1979.

Number of factory inspectors Number of resignations in each year

1 July 1975 557 n/a

1 April 1976 624 n/a

1 April 1977 676 n/a

1 April 1978 695 n/a

1 April 1979 742 36

1 April 1980 759 26

1 April 1981 735 28

1 April 1982 678 13

1 April 1983 654 14

1 April 1984 627 16

1 April 1985 652 15

1 April 1986 623 18

1 April 1987 621 37

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will list(a) the total number of registered premises, (b) the total number of employees and (c) the total number of inspections by environmental health officers during the years 1974 to 1987, inclusive.

§ Mr. Nicholls
This information is only available centrally for enforcement activities by local authorities under health and safety legislation for the years 1981 to 1986–87. Estimated figures from local authority returns are set out below. The figures for premises cover those registered statutorily under Factories Act 1961, Offices, Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963, and also those collected informally by the local authorities where no registration requirement exists.
434W

Year Number of premises Number of employees (millions) Total number of visits¹

1981 879,000 5.9 703,000

1982 874,000 6.3 667,000

1983 897,000 5.7 639,000

1984 958,000 5.8 655,000

1985 940,000 5.6 610,000

1986–87 958,000 5.8 567,000

¹ These figures refer to visits paid by all local authority officers appointed under the HSW Act (these included technical assistants, EHOs and specialist health and safety inspectors).

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how frequently environmental health officers inspect workplaces registered under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act.

§ Mr. Nicholls
There is no requirement to register premises under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, and there is no set frequency for inspection.

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) if he will list in theOfficial Report (a) the total number of workplaces and (b) the total number of Health and Safety Executive workplace inspections for the years 1974 to 1987, inclusive;
(2) if he will give (a) the offences and (b) the fines for each of the 25 prosecutions taken under the 1987 Health and Safety Executive blitz on construction sites.

§ Mr. Nicholls
I shall write to the hon. Member.

§ Mr. Patchett
To ask the Secretary of State for Employment if he will give the ages of the currently employed factory inspectors.

§ Mr. Nicholls
The ages of factory inspectors currently employed by the Health and Safety Executive on 30 November 1988 are as follows:

Number

All Grades Aged (22 – 30) 95

All Grades Aged (31 – 40) 240

All Grades Aged (41–50) 164

All Grades Aged (51 – 60) 118

All Grades Aged (61 – 65) 2

Total 619

Date	Number of Premises
1 January 1978	280,716
1 January 1979	300,718
1 January 1980	309,915
1 January 1981	309,100
¹1 January 1982	576,456
1 January 1983	468,609
1 January 1984	393,237
31 March 1985	395,860

Area	1980	1981	1982	1983	1984	1985	1986	1987
South West	32.0	30.0	28.0	27.0	26.0	26.0	26.0	29.0
South	30.0	28.0	27.0	27.0	29.0	26.0	27.5	27.5
South East	25.0	25.0	25.0	23.0	22.0	25.0	24.0	26.5
London North West¹	30.0	26.0	24.0	22.0	21.0	—	—	—
London North	25.0	23.0	22.0	22.0	20.0	36.0	35.5	36.0
London South	30.0	37.0	34.0	32.0	28.0	40.0	35.0	34.0
East Anglia	24.5	25.5	27.0	26.0	25.0	24.5	25.0	21.5
Northern Home Counties	26.0	21.0	20.0	19.0	20.0	22.0	23.0	24.5
East Midlands	29.0	26.0	24.0	23.0	23.0	23.0	25.0	26.0
West Midlands	44.0	44.0	40.0	37.0	33.0	32.0	32.0	32.0
Wales	33.0	31.0	29.0	23.0	23.0	23.0	25.0	26.0
Marches	28.0	27.0	25.0	23.0	22.0	24.0	25.5	23.5
North Midlands	31.0	30.0	29.0	26.0	25.0	27.0	23.0	23.0
South Yorkshire	33.0	31.0	28.0	29.5	29.0	27.0	24.5	24.0
West and North Yorkshire	37.0	35.0	29.0	31.0	29.0	35.5	33.5	31.5
Greater Manchester	34.5	34.5	33.0	33.0	32.0	33.5	28.5	30.5
Merseyside	29.0	28.0	26.0	25.0	27.0	25.0	26.0	25.0
North West	26.5	30.5	28.0	27.0	25.0	28.0	24.0	23.0
North East	38.0	37.0	33.0	32.0	31.0	31.0	30.0	31.0
Scotland East	33.0	31.0	32.0	27.0	25.0	26.0	23.0	23.0
Scotland West	34.0	33.0	30.0	28.0	26.0	27.0	25.0	25.0
¹ The London north-west office is no longer regarded as a separate area office. Factory inspectors located there are outstationed from the London, north or London, south area offices.

year	Informations laid	Convictions obtained	Average fine per conviction (£)
	^{1 2}All	³FAID	⁴FI	^{1 2}All	³FAID	⁴FI	^{1 2}All	³FAID	⁴FI
1975			2,956			2,732			81
1976			2,174			2,010			94
1977			2,814			2,546			105
1978			2,603			2,364			134
1979		2,427			2,227			184
1980		2,624			2,416			180
1981		1,892			1,654			189
1982		2,342			2,057			233
1983	2,238			1,941			252
1984	2,209			1,944			313
1985	2,231			1,915			436
1986 (January to March)⁵	541			467			438
1986–87⁶	2,199			1,771			410
1987–8⁶	2,322			2,002			⁷794
¹ Data include prosecutions taken by factory and agricultural inspectorates, explosives inspectorate, Her Majesty's mines and quarries inspectorate, nuclear installations inspectorate, railway inspectorate and the petroleum engineering division of the Department of Energy.

Date	Number of Premises
31 March 1986	399,885
31 March 1987	401,815
¹ The figure for 1982 is the first of those produced from a computerised database which was based on the Department of Employment census. The database was initially inflated by premises for which the Health and Safety Executive was not the enforcing authority and accounts for the high figures in 1982 and 1983.

Proceedings instituted by the Health and Saftey Executive's factory and agricultural inspectorates, 1987–88
	Number
Informations laid	¹30
Convictions obtained	19
Average fine per conviction (£)	²41,224
¹ These figures are for HSE inspectors only.

	Number of factory inspectors	Number of resignations in each year
1 July 1975	557	n/a
1 April 1976	624	n/a
1 April 1977	676	n/a
1 April 1978	695	n/a
1 April 1979	742	36
1 April 1980	759	26
1 April 1981	735	28
1 April 1982	678	13
1 April 1983	654	14
1 April 1984	627	16
1 April 1985	652	15
1 April 1986	623	18
1 April 1987	621	37

Year	Number of premises	Number of employees (millions)	Total number of visits¹
1981	879,000	5.9	703,000
1982	874,000	6.3	667,000
1983	897,000	5.7	639,000
1984	958,000	5.8	655,000
1985	940,000	5.6	610,000
1986–87	958,000	5.8	567,000
¹ These figures refer to visits paid by all local authority officers appointed under the HSW Act (these included technical assistants, EHOs and specialist health and safety inspectors).

	Number
All Grades Aged (22 – 30)	95
All Grades Aged (31 – 40)	240
All Grades Aged (41–50)	164
All Grades Aged (51 – 60)	118
All Grades Aged (61 – 65)	2
Total	619