HSE expected to cut unannounced workplace inspections

The BBC has been handed a leaked letter written by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) that details plans to cut back on unannounced inspections.

Although no final decision has been made on whether to do this, the HSE is dealing with a 35% reduction in government funding making it more likely to happen than not.

Such cuts will not impact all areas of business, but 3 high risk categories are included (nuclear, offshore, checmical).

Professor Rory O'Neill, editor of the safety magazine Hazards, believes this is a very bad idea:

"The HSE's job is to make the workplace safe, but now it's being explicitly instructed not to do that job right. The implication for health and safety is that workplaces will become deregulated."

We hope the HSE decides against such a cut and that it doesn't spread to other areas of industry too.

Source: BBC