HSE ‘is neglecting its core mission’

A leading research body on occupational health issues has echoed union concerns about the future of the Health and Safety Commission and Executive (HSC/E).

In its submission last month to the House of Commons Work and Pensions Select Committee’s inquiry into the operations and work of the HSC/E, the Institute of Occupational Medicine (IOM) claimed that there has been “a serious weakening of the HSE’s medical expertise, coupled with a reduction in their resources for enforcement of health and safety law”. As a result, it said, the HSE “is less able to provide clear, authoritative guidance, and is less able to carry out effective enforcement”.

The IOM expressed concern that the HSE “is under-resourced to meet its core responsibilities”, noting that this is a particular worry “in relation to occupational diseases, such as chronic lung diseases caused by dust and chemicals and occupational cancer”.

It also questioned “whether the HSE should have a headline target for reducing sickness absence, most of which is not work-related, when there is still much to do within the HSE’s core mission of protecting workers from exposure to hazards in the workplace”.

The TUC’s submission to the inquiry, also last month, argues that the UK has been transformed “from a world leader to a follower” on health and safety. This trend can best be reversed, it says, by improving the HSE’s resources and putting “worker involvement and safety representatives at the heart of its work”.