Health and safety offences

Health and safety law in the UK

The Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 (HSWA 1974), supported by a raft of health and safety regulations, provides the legislative framework for ensuring that employees and non-employees are not exposed to risk from work activities in the UK. The general duties imposed by HSWA 1974 apply in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland and many of the regulations equally apply across jurisdiction although Scotland and Northern Ireland also have jurisdiction specific regulations in some cases.

For information on the investigation and enforcement of health and safety breaches in Scotland, see the dedicated suite of content in Scottish health and safety enforcement—overview.

General duties imposed by HSWA 1974

The general duties imposed by HSWA 1974 include:

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a general duty on employers to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare at work of all employees—HSWA 1974, s 2(1)
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a general duty on employers to conduct their business in such a way as to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that non-employees (the public, visitors, contractors etc) who may be

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