Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions she has had with the Health and Safety Executive on the (a) application and (b) enforcement of the UK Continental Shelf of Directive 2013/30/EU on the safety of offshore oil and gas operations in the event that the UK leaves the EU on 29 March 2019 without a deal.

The Government is committed to maintaining health and safety protections for workers when the UK leaves the EU so there is no reason for these standards to change .

The Offshore Installations (Offshore Safety Directive) (Safety Case etc.) Regulations 2015 (SCR15) transposed the health and safety requirements of Directive 2013/30/EU into domestic legislation. All requirements and duties in SCR15 will continue to apply after the UK has left the EU. This will provide certainty and clarity for workers and industry.

Minor technical amendments are required to make sure SCR15 remains operable after EU exit.

Three amendments are included in The Health and Safety (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018 (SI 218/1370) (http://www.legislation.gov.uk/uksi/2018/1370/introduction/made). This Statutory Instrument (SI) was laid in Parliament on 18 December 2018.

One further amendment is included in The Product Safety and Metrology etc. (Amendment etc.) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukdsi/2019/9780111176368). The draft SI was laid in Parliament on 11 December 2018.