GE Healthcare Ltd, Grove Centre Site, Amersham - report - Q2 2009

Quarterly report for 1 April - 30 June 2009

Inspections
Routine matters
Non routine matters
Regulatory activities

Foreword

This report is issued as part of the Health and Safety Executive's commitment to make information about inspection and regulatory activities relating to the above site available to the public. It is for distribution to members of the GE Healthcare Ltd Maynard Centre Local Liaison Committee (LLC) and covers activities associated with the regulation of safety at the site. These reports are distributed quarterly and are available also from the Internet at www.hse.gov.uk/nuclear/llc/index.htm. Site Inspectors of HM Nuclear Installations Inspectorate attend some LLC meetings and will be happy to respond to any questions raised there by members.

Proposed changes to the Status of HSE’s Nuclear Directorate

The Government has put forward proposals to change the status of HSE's Nuclear Directorate (ND) to that of a Statutory Corporation under the auspices of the HSE. This is intended to enable ND, as the independent nuclear regulator of safety and security, to better meet the challenges of a changing nuclear industry over the coming years. The changes are to provide the nuclear regulator with greater flexibility and increase the accountability, transparency and openness of nuclear regulation. The Government are proposing that the statutory changes needed to bring this about will be made by a Legislative Reform Order (LRO).

This builds on the outcome of the Government initiated review of the UK's nuclear regulatory regime, led by Dr Tim Stone. The Summary Recommendations and the Government's response were published at the end of January 2009 (available on HSE's website: http://www.hse.gov.uk/nuclear/stonereview.htm).

A public consultation, run by DWP and DECC, on the LRO was launched on June 30th for a 12 week period, which gives the opportunity for stakeholders to comment on the proposals.

For access to this consultation please see: http://decc.gov.uk/en/content/cms/consultations/hse_restruct/hse_restruct.aspx.

These new arrangements will not change the substance or standards of regulation or compromise the independence of the nuclear regulatory body, and will not affect the decisions it takes or the international obligations the Government requires it to meet.

Subject to the outcome of the consultation and Parliamentary approval, and if the Parliamentary timetable permits, the aim is to bring the new body into being during 2010.

An internal change programme is currently operating within ND to ensure that the ND is ready to operate as a statutory corporation from spring 2010.

This programme does not in anyway compromise the current regulatory activities of ND.

Inspections

The NII Inspector attended the LLC on 29 April 2009. GE Healthcare will provide formal notes of this meeting. Inspections are also made at GE Healthcare Ltd's nuclear licensed sites at Cardiff (the Maynard Centre) and Harwell. Where these are relevant to the Grove Centre they are included below. For instance, the sites have many arrangements in common for compliance with the conditions attached to their site licences.

Routine matters

Inspections at Site. Inspections are undertaken at site as part of the process for monitoring compliance with:

the conditions attached by HSE/NII to the Nuclear Site Licence;
the Health and Safety at Work etc Act (HSWA) 1974 and regulations made under the HSWA for example the Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999;
and the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999.

This entails monitoring licensee's actions on the site in relation to incidents, operations, maintenance, projects, modifications, safety case changes and any other matters which may affect safety. The licensees/operators are required to make and implement adequate arrangements under the conditions attached to the Licence in order to ensure legal compliance. Inspections seek to judge both the adequacy of these arrangements and their implementation.

Issues arising from these and previous inspections are being pursued.

Non-routine matters

Licensees are required to have arrangements to respond to non-routine matters and events. NII inspectors judge the adequacy of the licensee's/operators response including actions taken to implement any necessary improvements. There are no items of particular note during the current reporting period.

Corporate

No corporate issues were identified during this period.

Grove Centre

NII will undertake a further LC14 inspection of GEH's Safety Case process in the autumn.

Regulatory activities

Under Health and Safety legislation NII Site Inspectors, and other HSE Inspectors, may issue formal documents to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. Under Nuclear Site Licence conditions HSE/NII issues regulatory documents, which either permission an activity or requires some form of action to be taken; these are collectively termed Licence Instruments (LIs). In addition inspectors may issue enforcement notices to secure improvements to safety.

(There is an outstanding Approval request for the Grove Centre Emergency Plan; this will be addressed during the next quarter of 2009.)

No other issues have arisen that have required formal regulatory action.