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 implications for his policies of safety incident data for the UK set out in the report by the G+ Global Offshore Wind Health and Safety Organisation entitled 2022 incident data report; and if he will make a statement.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) recognises that the expected life of an offshore wind farm, from construction to decommissioning will be around 25 years. During this time, the extent of the activity, and hence the risk, will vary significantly.

HSE has a targeted programme of preventive inspections to offshore wind farms based on their risk profile from a range of data, including safety incidents, to ensure those presenting the highest risk receive the appropriate regulatory attention. This data will also be used to determine the policy for regulating the offshore wind sector.

HSE focuses on identifying underlying causes and common issues to reduce the risk of accidents and / or near misses, and engaging with relevant trade bodies, including G+, to enable risks to be adequately managed.

All duty holders are encouraged by HSE to focus on health and safety leadership and to have adequate competence in workers at all levels.