Question

To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what assessment he has made of the effect on the ability of the Office for Nuclear Regulation to carry out its safety and security regulatory functions in full of the guidance set out in the Legislative and Regulatory Reform (Regulatory Functions) (Amendment) Order 2014.

The Regulators’ Code which came into force in April 2014 was issued as guidance under the Legislative and Regulatory Reform (Regulatory Functions) (Amendment) Order 2014. The code provides guidance for all regulators whose functions are specified and a framework for how they should engage with those they regulate when exercising their regulatory functions independently from Government. This includes providing straightforward ways for businesses to engage, basing regulatory activities on risk and helping businesses to comply by publishing clear information, guidance and advice.

The Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) is required to have regard to the code when developing policies and operational procedures which guide their regulatory activities. However, the Regulators’ Code states that where a regulator concludes, on the basis of material evidence, that a specific area of the code is either not applicable or outweighed by another relevant consideration, then the regulator is not bound by that provision but should record the decision and their rationale. This acknowledges certain circumstances where regulators may not be able to follow all provisions of the code, for example decisions concerning safety and security, and that they will not be bound by the provision where these considerations justifiably outweigh provisions of the Regulators’ Code.

The ONR is expected to demonstrate compliance with the Code without compromising its core purpose of nuclear safety and security. The ONR has recently published the results of a review they undertook to assess compliance against the Code in September 2015: http://news.onr.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/report.pdf.