HSC announces independent chair of Buncefield investigation board

HSE press release C001:06 12 January 2006

The Health and Safety Commission (HSC) today announced the appointment of the Rt. Hon. Lord Newton of Braintree as the independent chairman of the board supervising the investigation into the Buncefield oil depot incident on 11 December 2005.

Commenting on his appointment, Lord Newton, said: "The HSC's decision to establish an investigation board was a significant move and highlights the severity of the incident and the degree of concern for people living close to the Buncefield site and to the wider industry. The investigation will be carried out thoroughly, objectively and concluded in a timely manner with its findings made public as soon as possible, subject to legal considerations."

The investigation board will report to both HSC and the Environment Agency. The HSC Chair, Bill Callaghan, has approved the membership of the board. As well as the board chair, it also includes two other independent members with relevant expertise, Professor Dougal Drysdale, a leading authority on fire safety engineering and Dr Peter Baxter, a consultant physician in occupational and environmental medicine. Other board members are Taf Powell, Investigation Manager and head of HSE's Offshore Division, David Ashton, head of HSE's Field Operations North West and Headquarters Division and Paul Leinster, Director of Operations at the Environment Agency.

The board will oversee the investigation in accordance with HSE's Major Incident Investigation Policy and Procedures.

The Commission will publish the special report under Section 14(5) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.

Notes to editors

1 The Rt. Hon. Lord Newton of Braintree has been a life peer since 1997 after spending 23 years as a Conservative Member of Parliament for Braintree, Essex. As an MP he was a government whip. From 1982 to 1988 he held ministerial positions at the Department of Health and Social Security. In 1988 he joined the Cabinet as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and minister at the DTI. He then held the post of Secretary of State for Social Security from 1989 to 1992 when he was appointed Leader of the House of Commons, which he held until 1997. In 2002 he chaired the Committee that reviewed the operation of the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act 2001.

• Professor Dougal Drysdale is one of the leading international authorities in Fire Safety Engineering. He was the Chairman of the International Association of Fire Safety Science until September 2005 and is currently the editor of the leading scientific journal in the field, Fire Safety Journal. His wide range of research interests includes the ignition characteristics of combustible materials, flame spread and various aspects of fire dynamics. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Fellow of both the Institution of Fire Engineers and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers.
• Dr Peter Baxter is a consultant physician in occupational and environmental medicine at Cambridge University and Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge. In the past he has advised the government on the impacts on public health in the setting of air quality standards, major chemical incidents, natural disasters and climate change.
• Taf Powell is head of HSE's Offshore Division. He graduated in Geology and Chemistry from Nottingham University. His oil field career has been split between working in the UK and abroad in offshore exploration and development and regulation of the sector in licensing, well operations, policy and safety regulation. In 1991 he joined the HSE's Offshore Division from BP and started work to develop the new offshore regulatory framework, one of Lord Cullen's recommendations following his inquiry into the Piper Alpha disaster. As HSE's Operations Manager, based in Aberdeen, he then led inspection teams and well engineering specialists responsible for enforcing the new regulations until 2000 when he took up his current role.
• Dr Paul Leinster is the Director of Operations at the Environment Agency. Up until March 2004 he was the Director of Environmental Protection, having joined the Agency in 1998. Prior to this he was the Director of Environmental Services with SmithKline Beecham. Previous employers also include BP International, Schering Agrochemicals and the consultancy firm Thomson-MTS where he was Managing Director. Paul has a degree in Chemistry and a PhD in environmental engineering from Imperial College and an MBA from the Cranfield School of Management. Paul has worked for 30 years in the health and safety and environmental field.
• David Ashton is currently head of HSE's Field Operations North West and Headquarters Division. He joined HSE in 1977 as an inspector in the west of Scotland where he dealt with a wide range of manufacturing and service industries, including construction, engineering and the health services. In 1986 he joined Field Operations HQ, to deal with machinery safety. He then held the post of Principal Inspector of manufacturing in Preston for two years, before being appointed as a management systems auditor to examine offshore safety cases in the newly formed Offshore Division. In 1993 he became Head of HSE's Accident Prevention Advisory Unit, looking at the management of health and safety in organisations. Between 1998 and 2003 David was HSE's Director of Personnel, before being appointed to his current position.

2 HSE and the Environment Agency's terms of reference with regard to this incident are to:

• ensure the thorough investigation of the incident, the factors leading up to it, its impact both on and off-site, and to establish its causation including root causes;
• identify and transmit without delay to duty holders and other appropriate recipients any information requiring immediate action to further safety and/or environmental protection in relation to storage and distribution of hydrocarbon fuels;
• examine the HSE's and the Environment Agency's role in regulating the activities on this site under the COMAH Regulations, considering relevant policy guidance and intervention activity;
• work closely with all relevant stakeholders, both to keep them informed of progress with the investigation and to contribute relevant expertise to other inquiries that may be established;
• make recommendations for future action to ensure the effective management and regulation of major accident risk at COMAH sites. This should include consideration of off-site as well as on-site risks and consider prevention of incidents, preparations for response to incidents, and mitigation of their effects;
• produce an initial report for the HSC and the Environment Agency as soon as the main facts have been established. Subject to legal considerations, this report will be made public;
• ensure that the relevant notifications are made to the European Commission; and
• make the final report public.

3 The Commission has exercised a power under Section 14(2)(a) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, under which it: "may at any time direct the Executive or authorise any other person to investigate and make a special report on any matter."

4 The Buncefield oil depot is subject to the Control of Major Accident Hazards Regulations 1999 (COMAH) and HSE and the Environment Agency are the joint Competent Authority for these regulations.

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