Lords examine Work at Height Regulations
August 14, 2009
The House of Lords is to examine the Work at Height Regulations 2005 (WAHR) to assess how they have been implemented by the Government, and their impact on those affected by them.
The review was initiated by the House of Lords Select Committee on the Merits of Statutory Instruments, which has issued a call for evidence from organisations and individuals with experience of the WAHR to determine how they have worked, and if their implementation and impact have been as expected.
Issues that the Committee will examine include:
- whether the legislation has achieved its stated objective of fewer accidents
- the cost of implementing the regulations — whether more or less than originally anticipated by the government
- whether there have been any unintended consequences in the way the legislation has worked
The WAHR was the product of the European Directive on Temporary Work at Height (2001/45/EC), which was adopted by the EU in response to the accident record on falls from height across Member States. There was some criticism at the time over "gold-plating" of the legislation by the HSE, which transformed the relatively short directive into a vast consultation document, and the regulations were somewhat contentious due to their premise that all work at height should be avoided where possible.
Further information on details of how to contribute to the review can be accessed here. The deadline for submission of written evidence is 11 September 2009.
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