§ Mr. DobsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment when his Department was first notified of an incident which occurred in the channel tunnel in January in which two channel tunnel workers were taken to hospital for treatment after a bolt of electricity arced across from the main cable; what is the standard procedure for notifying his Department of accidents in the channel tunnel; if he will publish a table giving a full list of accidents in or around the channel tunnel notified to his Department, including dates, nature and injuries sustained; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Michael Forsyth[pursuant to his reply, 18 February 1994]: I regret that the answer given in my reply of 18 February 1994, Official Report, column 1024, was incomplete and that the final paragraph was omitted. The correct information is as follows:
The Health and Safety Executive was notified of this incident on 18 January. It notified the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority on 19 January.
The Reporting of Injuries, Diseases, and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations 1985 apply to the United Kingdom side of the channel tunnel, and reportable accidents and dangerous occurrences must be notified to the HSE. The HSE informs the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority immediately of any fatal accidents or incidents with potential for major consequences. The HSE also 242W reports regularly to the Channel Tunnel Safety Authority other accident information to assist accident prevention on the French side of the project.
The detailed accident information requested is not readily available and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost. However, between March 1987 and September 1993, the latest date for which information is available, a provisional total of 1,386 accidents which occurred during work on the United Kingdom side of the channel tunnel were reported to the HSE.