Health and Safety
You can see the measures for each regulation by downloading the Health and Safety spreadsheet here
The Health and Safety spotlight period is now over, but you are still able to comment below. Contributions up to the 28 July will be considered by the independent review of health and safety legislation by Professor Löfstedt and inform government thinking on regulatory reform. Professor Löfstedt will report to Ministers in the Autumn. Comments and submissions received after the 28 July will still be considered by the Health and Safety Executive as part of the Government’s longer-term commitment to regulatory reform.
Health and safety regulations are designed to protect employees, employers and the public from harm arising from work activities. The Red Tape Challenge is an opportunity for people to directly influence the future of health and safety regulations to help simplify health and safety and support business growth in Great Britain. Health and safety should be proportionate to risk and the regulations should reflect that. The government has already started reforms to health and safety and the Red Tape Challenge will enable everyone to have their say on the regulations underpinning Great Britain’s health and safety culture, whether they work in the field of health and safety or have experience of the regulation as an employee, business owner or member of the public.
The Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 is the parent act from which most occupational health and safety regulations flow. You can find it here (opens in a new window).
The regulations have been divided into four different categories to enable people to comment on those most relevant to them or their area of work.
Major hazard industries
These regulations relate to those who work with hazardous materials in large quantities and in dangerous environments such as nuclear facilities.
Higher risk workplaces
These regulations aim to protect those working in industries such as construction, waste and recycling and certain areas of manufacturing, as they may be at higher risk of accidents.
Dealing with hazardous chemicals and materials
These regulations relate to those who work with hazardous materials in large quantities and in dangerous environments.
General health and safety in the workplace
These regulations are designed to prevent death, injury and ill-health in the workplace including carrying out risk assessments and reporting major injuries.
We previously invited general comments on Health and Safety regulations. To view the old comment page, please click here.
Fire safety regulations were previously included in the Health and Safety theme. Some commentators have said that they more logically fit with building regulations. We are therefore including Fire Safety regulations in the Construction and Housing theme which goes live in November. The Fire Safety page will open again as part of the Housing and Construction theme, and all comments received to date will be considered as part of this theme. You can still view previous comments on the fire safety regulations page here.
This site is designed to promote open discussion of ways in which the aims of existing regulation can be fulfilled in the least burdensome way possible. The presence of a particular regulation or law on this website should not be read as implying any intention on the part of the Government to remove that regulation or law from the statute book. The purpose of this exercise is to open government up to the public.
