Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if he will investigate the causes of the increase in the backlog of safety critical maintenance work on oil and gas installations in 2014.

Operators choose how best to invest in the exploitation of the offshore oil and gas industry. The Health and Safety Executive’s programme of offshore inspections and accident and incident investigations includes both the identification of immediate failures and underlying causes; findings are followed up with the relevant duty holders. Where consistent causes of failure are identified, these are shared with industry to assist operators in directing investment towards securing efficient and safe production.