HC Deb 22 February 1991 vol 186 cc300-1W
Mr. Mallon

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the threshold noise levels above which there may be injurious effects on the health and welfare of individuals(a) at work and (b) at home.

Mr. Forth

The information requested is as follows:

(a) Noise at work

The Noise at Work Regulations 1989 set a daily personal noise exposure of 85 dB(A) as the first action level. This is a level of regular personal exposure which, over a period of years, may result in damage to hearing. There is a small but discernible risk of hearing damage from exposure levels below this.

Other health effects from noise exposures have been reported in scientific literature. The Health and Safety Executive has sponsored a review into the state of knowledge of these effects of noise and hopes to publish a report of the findings later this year.

For other effects on the welfare of people, the threshold will depend on the nature of the noise and the individual circumstances.

(b) Noise at home

Responsibility for noise in the home rests with my right hon. Friend, the Secretary of State for the Environment who has advised me that under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 local authorities in England and Wales are under a duty to take such steps as are reasonably practicable to investigate complaints of statutory nuisance. If noise emitted from premises of any category is considered to be prejudicial to health or a nuisance, local authorities are empowered to issue a notice requiring the abatement of the nuisance. Non-compliance without reasonable excuse is an offence. There is no fixed level of noise which constitutes a statutory nuisance; individual circumstances differ and each case needs to be judged on its merits by local authorities. Factors to be taken into account include loudness, frequency and duration of the noise.