
1 
These Regulations may be cited as the Health and Safety Inquiries
(Procedure) Regulations 1975 and shall come into operation on 1st May 1975.

2 

(1) In these Regulations—
 “the 1974 Act”
means the Health and Safety
at Work etc. Act 1974;
 “appointed person”
means a person appointed by the Commission or by the
appropriate Agriculture Minister, as the case may be, to hold an inquiry;

 “the appropriate Agriculture
Minister” has the meaning assigned
by section 53(1)
of the 1974 Act;
 “the Commission”
means the Health and Safety Commission;

 “enforcing authority”
 means an enforcing authority as defined
in section 18(7)
of the 1974 Act;
 “the Executive”
means the Health and Safety Executive;

 “inquiry”
means an inquiry to which these Regulations apply;

 “trade union”
and “employers' association” have the meanings assigned by 
section 28 of the Trade Union and Labour
Relations Act 1974.
(2) The 
Interpretation Act 1889 shall apply to the
interpretation of these Regulations as it applies to the interpretation of
an Act of Parliament.
3 

(1) These Regulations shall have effect with
respect to the proceedings at or in connection with inquiries held under 
section 14(2)(b) of the 1974 Act or under that
provision as modified in relation to agriculture by 
section 32 of and Schedule 4
to that Act.
(2) In their application to inquiries held
under section 14(2)(b)
of the 1974 Act as so modified, Regulations 4
, 5 and 
10 shall have effect as if for the references
to the Commission there were substituted references to the appropriate Agriculture
Minister.
4 

(1) A date, time and place for the holding
of the inquiry shall be fixed and may be varied by the Commission, who shall
give not less than 28 days' notice in writing of such date, time and place
to every person entitled to appear at the inquiry whose name and address are
known to the Commission:Provided that—
(i) with the consent of all such persons,
the Commission may give such lesser period of notice as shall be agreed with
those persons; and
(ii) where it becomes necessary or advisable
to vary the time or place fixed for the inquiry, the Commission shall give
such notice of the variation as may appear to it to be reasonable in the circumstances.

(2) The notice given under 
paragraph (1) of this Regulation shall state
the name of the appointed person and the names of any assessors appointed
to assist him in the inquiry.
(3) Without prejudice to the foregoing provisions
of this Regulation the Commission shall also for the purpose of notifying
persons who may be concerned of the holding of the inquiry, take one or more
of the following steps, namely—
(a) publish notice of the inquiry in one
or more newspapers, including, where appropriate, newspapers circulating in
the locality in which the subject matter of the inquiry arose; and
(b) give such other notice of the inquiry
as appears to the Commission to be appropriate,and the requirements as to the period of notice contained in 
paragraph (1) of this Regulation shall not
apply to any such notices.
5 

(1) The persons entitled to appear at the
inquiry shall be—
(a) the Commission;
(b) any enforcing authority concerned;
(c) where the inquiry relates to any matter
arising in Scotland, the Procurator Fiscal;
(d) any employers' association or trade union
representing respectively employers or employees who are concerned;
(e) any person who was injured or suffered
damage as a result of the accident, occurrence, situation, or other matter
the subject of the inquiry or his personal representatives;
(f) the owner or occupier of any premises
in which there occurred or arose the accident, occurrence, situation or other
matter the subject of the inquiry;
(g) any person carrying on activities giving
rise to the accident, occurrence, situation or other matter the subject of
the inquiry.
(2) Any other person may appear at the discretion
of the appointed person.
6 

(1) A body corporate may appear by its clerk
or secretary or by any other officer appointed for the purpose, or by counsel
or solicitor, and also, in the case of the Commission, by an officer of the
Executive so appointed.
(2) A government department, an employers'
association or a trade union may appear by counsel or solicitor or by any
other person appointed for the purpose.
(3) Any other person may appear on his own
behalf or be represented by counsel or solicitor or any other person.
(4) Where there are two or more persons having
a similar interest in the matter under inquiry, the appointed person may allow
one or more persons to appear for the benefit of some or all persons so interested.

7 

(1) The appointed person may, either of his
own motion or on the application of any person entitled or permitted to appear,
cause to be served on any person appearing to him to be likely to be able
to give material evidence or to produce any document likely to be material
evidence, a notice requiring that person to attend at the inquiry at the time
and place specified in the notice to give evidence or produce the document.

(2) A person on whom a notice is served under 
paragraph (1) of this Regulation may apply
to the appointed person either at or before the inquiry to vary or set aside
the requirement, and where he does so before the inquiry he shall give notice
of his application to the person, if any, who applied for the notice under 
paragraph (1) to be served.
(3) A notice containing a requirement under 
paragraph (1) of this Regulation shall contain
a reference to the fact that under section 33(2)
 of the 1974 Act a person who contravenes such
a requirement is liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding £400.

(4) No person shall be required under this
Regulation to attend to give evidence or produce any document, unless the
necessary expenses of his attendance are paid or tendered to him.
8 

(1) Except as otherwise provided in these
Regulations, the procedure at and in connection with an inquiry shall be in
the discretion of the appointed person who shall state at the commencement
of the hearing of the procedure which, subject to consideration of any submission
by the persons appearing at the inquiry, he proposes to adopt and shall inform
those persons what he proposes as regards any site inspection arising out
of the hearing.
(2) Except as provided in 
paragraph (3) of this Regulation, the inquiry
shall be held in public.
(3) The appointed person—
(a) shall, to the extent to which he has
been so directed in writing by a Minister of the Crown, hold the inquiry otherwise
than in public for the purpose of hearing evidence relating to matters specified
in the direction, being matters of such a nature that it would, in the opinion
of the Minister, be against the interests of national security to allow the
evidence to be given in public; and
(b) may, on application made to him in that
behalf, hold the inquiry otherwise than in public to such extent as he considers
necessary for the purpose of hearing evidence, the giving of which is in his
opinion likely to disclose information relating to a trade secret,and information disclosed to any person by the hearing of evidence
in the circumstances mentioned in sub-paragraphs
(a) or (b)
above shall not be disclosed by him except for the purposes of the inquiry:
Provided —
(i) that a member of the Council on Tribunals
or of its Scottish Committee in his capacity as such shall be entitled to
attend the hearing in any case; and
(ii) that a representative of any such employers'
association or trade union as is mentioned in 
Regulation 5(1)(d) in his capacity as such
shall be entitled to attend the hearing in a case falling within 
sub-paragraph (b) above.
(4) Persons entitled or permitted to appear
shall be heard in such order as the appointed person may determine.
(5) Persons entitled to appear shall be entitled
to make an opening statement, to call evidence and to cross-examine persons
giving evidence, but any other person appearing at the inquiry may do so only
to the extent permitted by the appointed person.
(6) Where the appointed person so requires,
witnesses shall give evidence on oath, and for that purpose the appointed
person may administer an oath in due form.
(7) Any evidence may be admitted at the discretion
of the appointed person, who may direct that documents to be tendered in evidence
may be inspected by any person entitled or permitted to appear at the inquiry
and that facilities be afforded him to take or obtain copies thereof.
(8) The appointed person shall be entitled
(subject to disclosure thereof at the inquiry and making available copies
thereof to the persons appearing at the inquiry) to take into account any
written representations or statement received by him before the inquiry from
any person.
(9) The appointed person may from time to
time adjourn the inquiry, and where he does so shall give reasonable notice
to every person entitled or permitted to appear at the inquiry of the date,
time and place of the adjourned inquiry, provided that where the date, time
and place of the adjourned inquiry are announced at the inquiry, no further
notice shall be required.
9 
The appointed person and any person appointed to assist him in
the inquiry may, where necessary for the purpose of the inquiry, at any reasonable
time enter and make an inspection of any premises to which the inquiry relates
and anything in them.
10 

(1) The appointed person shall after the
close of the inquiry make a report in writing to the Commission, which shall
include the appointed person's findings of fact and his recommendations
if any or his reason for not making any recommendation.
(2) Except where the said report is to be
published, in whole or in part, in pursuance of 
section 14(5) of the 1974 Act, the Commission
shall send to any person who appeared at the inquiry a copy of the report
or so much of it as the Commission thinks fit.
11 
The provisions of section 46
of the 1974 Act shall apply in relation to the service of notices required
or authorised to be served or given by these Regulations as they apply to
notices required or authorised to be served or given by the 1974 Act.
Signed by order of the Secretary of State.
Harold Walker
Joint Parliamentary Under Secretary of State
Department of Employment
7th March 1975