C020:07                                                                                                           1 November 2007

HSC/E publishes Health and Safety Statistics for 2006/07

The Health and Safety Commission (HSC) has today published the latest statistics on work-related ill health, and workplace injury in Great Britain. ‘Health and Safety Statistics 2006/07’ presents the top-level statistics, including reports on progress against the targets set in the ‘Revitalising Health and Safety’ strategy. The publication also includes latest statistics on health and safety enforcement activity.

More detailed data and commentary are available on the HSE website at hse.gov.uk/statistics. The document itself is at hse.gov.uk/statistics/overall/hssh0607.pdf. (Other statistics have been published earlier in the year: please see Notes to Editors).

Key facts for 2006/07 are:

Ill health

• 2.2 million people were suffering from an illness they believed was caused or made worse by their current or past work.
• 646 000 of these were new cases in the last 12 months, equating to 2100 per 100 000 people employed in the last 12 months.
• 2037 people died of mesothelioma in 2005 (latest data), and thousands more from other occupational cancers and lung diseases.
  

Injuries

• 241 workers were killed at work, a rate of 0.8 per 100 000 workers.
• 141 350 other injuries to employees were reported under RIDDOR, a rate of 535.1 per 100 000 employees.
• 274 000 reportable injuries occurred, according to the Labour Force Survey (LFS), a rate of 1000 per 100 000 workers.

Working days lost

• 36 million days were lost overall (1.5 days per worker), 30 million due to work-related ill health and 6 million due to workplace injury.

Health and safety targets: progress to 2006/07

• The incidence rate of self-reported work-related ill health from the Labour Force Survey rose suddenly between 2005/06 and 2006/07. The rate in 2006/07 is similar to that in 2001/02 despite earlier indications of a downward trend from 2001/02 to 2005/06.
• Our judgment is that we are not on track to meet the Revitalising or PSA ill-health targets.
• The rate of employee major injury reported under RIDDOR, that dominates the injury target, shows a fall within the range of 7% to 11%, between 1999/2000 and 2006/07. This is against a pro-rata Revitalising target for 2006/07 of a 7% reduction.
• Our judgment is that we are on track to meet Revitalising and PSA fatal and major injuries targets.
• The number of working days lost per worker from the 2006/07 Labour Force Survey is similar to that in 2003/04 despite earlier indications of a downward trend from 2000-02 to 2005/06. Since 2000-02 working days lost per worker has fallen by 12% within a possible range of 2% to 23%.The pro rata Revitalising target reduction of 21% for 2006/07 falls close to the top end of this range.
• Our judgment is that we are not on track to meet Revitalising or PSA days lost targets.

Enforcement

• 1141 offences were prosecuted by HSE.
• 257 offences were prosecuted by local authorities in 2005/06 (latest data).

Notes to editors

1. The top level statistical picture is set out in a pocket-size booklet, designed to give a brief, accessible guide to the key facts and figures. The detailed data are on the HSE website at www.hse.gov.uk/statistics.
2. Other statistics are released throughout the year. Statistics of workplace fatalities were published in July 2007 in ‘Statistics of Fatal Injuries 2006/07’, available at http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/overall/fatl0607.pdf. Details of other statistical releases are provided in HSE statistical publication and release schedule, available at http://www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/books.htm.
3. As well as giving data for Great Britain, the statistics released today include figures for Scotland, Wales and the Government Office Regions of England. Statistical briefings for each of are available on the website at www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/regions/index.htm.
4. The ‘Revitalising Health and Safety’ strategy statement, launched by the Deputy Prime Minister and the Chair of the Health and Safety Commission in June 2000, set national targets to reduce the incidence rate of fatal and major injuries, the incidence rate of work-related ill health and the rate of working days lost from work-related injury and ill health. The targets relating to ill health were also featured in ‘Securing Health Together: A long-term occupational health strategy for Great Britain’, launched by the Health and Safety Commission and Executive, in association with other government departments, in July 2000.
5. Progress against HSE’s Public Service Agreement (PSA) for the period 2005/06 to 2007/08 is measured against targets for ill-health, injury and days lost targets among other target measures for major hazard precursors see http://www.hse.gov.uk/aboutus/strategiesandplans/sr2004.htm.
6. The assessments of progress against the targets represent HSE statisticians’ best judgments based on all the information currently available at this stage. They are subject to uncertainty - for example because some of the data come from surveys, which are affected by sampling error. There is greater uncertainty in the assessments against the PSA targets because of the much shorter time series
7. The baseline for the Revitalising target working days lost target is taken as 2000-02, because comparable data on working days lost, from the LFS, are only available since 2000/01 (for injuries) and 2001/02 (for ill health).
8. Arrangements for ‘National Statistics’ were launched by the Government in July 2000, to enhance the integrity and quality of official statistics. The National Statistics badge, which is on ‘Health and Safety Statistics 2006/07’ and this press release, means that the statistics concerned must be produced to high professional standards, subject to regular quality assurance reviews and free from political interference. To achieve this, the National Statistics arrangements include an independent Statistics Commission, a Code of Practice with supporting protocols, and mechanisms for consultation with stakeholders. Statistics on working conditions, enforcement notices and offences prosecuted do not meet all the criteria to be described as ‘National Statistics’ – in particular, responsibility for the release arrangements does not rest with HSE statisticians – but they are included here for completeness. Further details about National Statistics are on the Office for National Statistics website at www.statistics.gov.uk/about_ns/cop/default.asp.
9. Copies of ‘Health and Safety Statistics 2006/07’ are free and can be ordered from the Statistics Branch, Health and Safety Executive, 4S.3 Redgrave Court, Bootle, Merseyside L20 3QZ, tel: 0151 951 4697/3392, fax: 0151 951 4703. The publication is also available online at www.hse.gov.uk/statistics/overall/hssh0607.pdf.

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