Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the potential merits introducing a maximum temperature for workplaces.

There is already a legal duty for employers to fully assess the risks to workers from extreme heat, and additionally to ensure a reasonable temperature for indoor workplaces.

The Government is committed to ensuring workplaces are safe in the modern world and in ‘Next Steps to Make Work Pay’, we committed to look at how to modernise health and safety guidance for extreme temperatures.

As part of this, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is progressing a wider review of the Approved Code of Practice (ACOP) for the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 to ensure it is fit for purpose for a modern workplace.