§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy if he will list the dates since 1982 when his Department last met trade unions to discuss safety and working conditions on offshore installations; and what action he took.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonSince 1982 my officials have held quarterly meetings with union representatives to discuss 817W safety matters. We value these regular meetings and have taken follow up action on a number of points made by union representatives.
§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many gas leaks have been reported to his Department occurring on offshore installations in each year since 1979.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonThe information required could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy what is the death and serious accident figures for each year since 1979 in the North sea offshore industry expressed as a proportion per 100,000 workers employed.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonDetails are set out in the table, but are expressed per 1,000 workers employed as this is more appropriate in relation to the number of workers offshore. Figures for 1979 are not directly comparable with those for later years, as the basis for calculating the numbers employed changed in 1980:
Dangerous occurrences Per 1,000 employees Dangerous occurrences Deaths 1979 8.9 0.95 1980 5.3 0.20 1981 6.3 0.30 1982 8.4 0.60 1983 5.6 0.30 1984 6.0 0.40 1985 7.2 0.30 1986 7.5 0.10 1987 6.2 0.20
§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy what requirement there is for workers in the offshore industry to have a survival certificate; how much they cost to acquire; how much the industry contributed to safety and health training for each year since 1979; and how many employees have the certificate.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonThere is no requirement for offshore workers to obtain a survival certificate. The Offshore Installations (Operational Safety, Health and Welfare) Regulations 1976 (SI 1976 1019) require operators to appoint competent personnel and to ensure that they have experience of equipment they are required to use for the operations they are required to carry out. The cost of safety and health training is a matter for the industry.
§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy how many installations there are in the British sector section of the North sea offshore industries; and how many safety inspections have been conducted on them for each of the years since 1979.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonTwo hundred and seventeen. Each installation is generally inspected at least once a year.
§ Mr. PrescottTo ask the Secretary of State for Energy what were the estimated numbers of people employed in the offshore oil industry used in the accident figures for the years 1979 and 1980; how these calculations were arrived at; what difference it made to the death and serious818W accident figures for each of those years; and what steps are taken to ensure that these figures produced each year accurately reflect the extent of accidents in the North sea offshore industry.
§ Mr. Peter MorrisonEmployment figures for 1979 were obtained from a survey carried out by my Department over a period of two weeks in September 1979 to cover all shifts on offshore installations. The total employed came to 10,500. Figures for 1980 were higher (22,000) reflecting a significant increase in activity offshore and a more comprehensive survey based on information collected by my Department and others which included, for example, people employed on service vessels, survey teams and construction support barges, who had not been included in the 1979 survey. The number of deaths included in the statistics for each of these years was unaffected by the changed basis for the numbers employed since companies are required by the Offshore Installations (Inspectors and Casualties) Regulations 1973 (SI 1973/1842) to report all accidents offshore.