15.03.2012

UK HSE charging delayed

The UK’s Health & Safety Executive (HSE) has delayed its cost recovery scheme, due to have started in April, until later in the year – most likely October.

The scheme plans to recover costs from those who break health and safety laws for the time and effort that the organisation spends on helping to put matters right - investigating and taking enforcement action.

Those businesses that comply fully with HSE or are not at fault, will be free from any costs.

Gordon MacDonald, HSE’s programme director, said: “The government has agreed that it is right that those who break the law should pay their fair share of the costs to put things right - and not the public purse.”

“The Government intends to proceed with the scheme as recommended to ministers by HSE’s board in December in response to the formal consultation that took place last summer. Discussions are still taking place on the technical details of the scheme, which we expect to conclude soon.”

The HSE says that it is taking advantage of the extra time to work further with businesses to improve their understanding of the scheme and how it will affect them. A trial run of the new processes and procedures underpinning the scheme is already underway and will continue until the scheme is implemented.