§ Mr. ClaphamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will estimate the costs to the United Kingdom economy of occupational injury and ill health over each of the last five years. [7120]
§ Angela EagleThe Health and Safety Executive estimate that the total cost to the British economy of work accidents (including preventable damage-only accidents) and work-related ill health was between £6 billion and £12 billion in 1990.
Estimates of the cost since 1990 have not been made because of the absence of more recent comprehensive data on work-related ill health. New data will start to become available later this year, covering 1995. Using this data, the health and Safety Executive will prepare updated costs in 1998.
The estimate in the draft reply of £6 billion-12 billion (1990 prices) is about 1–2 per cent. of national output. This includes the costs of damage and disruption to production, health care costs, and other administrative costs. An estimate of the total cost to society, which includes an allowance for the human costs of pain, grief and suffering, is £11 billion-16 billion.
§ Mr. ClaphamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment. Transport and the Regions what sums his Department has spent on preventing occupational illness and injury in each of the last five years. [7122]
§ Angela EagleThe Health and Safety Commission and Executive's aim is to ensure that risks to people's health and safety activities are properly controlled. This extends beyond occupational illness and injury to work activities that might put members of the public at risk but it is not possible to identify separately the work involved in achieving both aspects of the aim. However, it is estimated that the additional cost of protecting the public would represent only a small proportion of the total cost.
The Health and Safety Executive spent the following sums in each of the last five years:
Year £ Million 1992–93 173.00 1993–94 181.00 1994–95 180.00 1995–96 181.00 1996–97 178.00
§ Mr. ClaphamTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions if he will estimate the number of those(a) injured, (b) killed and (c) made ill by their work for each of the last live years. [7121]
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§ Angela EagleThe table shows the total number of fatal and other injuries to employees, trainees and self-employed people reported to enforcing authorities under the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations, 1985 and 1995 (RIDDOR) between 1992–93 and 1996–97 (years commencing 1 April).
Year Fatal injuries 1Total injuries 1992–93 339 161,675 1993–94 296 155,734 1994–95 272 160,844 1995–96 258 150,968 1996–972 287 155,582 1 Including fatal, major and those leading to more than three days incapacity for work. 2 Provisional. Finalised figures will be available in early 1998. HSE gets to know of virtually all workplace deaths, but non-fatal injuries are subject to under-reporting. To estimate the reporting levels HSE included a set of questions in the Labour Force Surveys in 1993–94, 1994–95 and 1995–96. The results of these surveys combined estimate that around 424,000 reportable non-fatal injuries to workers occur annually, giving a reporting level for RIDDOR of about 40 per cent.
From responses to a special set of questions in the 1990 Labour Force Survey, which is based on self reporting, it has been estimated that in the 12 months prior to the survey, 2.2 million people in England and Wales suffered from an illness which they believed had been caused or made worse by their work.
In terms of detailed reporting of occupational illness, there is no one single fully reliable source. The Health and Safety Executive makes use of a range of sources to produce figures for ill-health for the Health and Safety Commission's annual publication "Health and Safety Statistics". I will send the hon. Member a copy of the most recent report.