British Safety Council comment ahead of Work and Pensions Select Committee HSE questions

British Safety Council comment ahead of Work and Pensions Select Committee HSE questions

Commenting ahead of the Work and Pensions Select Committee asking questions of the Health and Safety Executive tomorrow (Wednesday 5 February), Mike Robinson, Chief Executive of British Safety Council said:

“Since 2010, the Health and Safety Executive’s (HSE’s) annual funding has decreased by £43 million. This very real funding cut does not reflect the material additions to the HSE’s workload, nor does it reflect the scale of the challenges that the future holds. That is why, in our Health, Safety and Wellbeing Manifesto we called on the Government to ensure that the HSE, the Buildings Safety Regulator, and local authorities have adequate funding to keep workers safe.

“We know that the future will be defined by rapid change, that will likely have profound impacts on workplace safety. From technology and AI to the changing nature of how and where we work, the challenges our sector faces are both important and varied. While we know there is more that HSE can do to improve, I hope these contexts can be reflected in the Select Committee’s discussion, as well as an understanding of the centrality of a well-funded regulator to the safety of our workplaces; not only in its role as an enforcement body but also in its capacity as an awareness-raising organisation.”