Asked by: Lord Lester of Herne Hill (Non-affiliated - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of the benefits and costs to the UK of membership of the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work.
Answered by Baroness Buscombe
The Agency collects and shares good practice information on national and European Union priorities for safety and health at work, working with national contact points in all Member States. Its activities are particularly valuable to recent and proposed EU entrants and those with less well developed health and safety systems.
The European Court of Auditors publishes annual reports on the accounts of the Agency that are automatically deposited with Parliament for scrutiny purposes. For the latest report (financial position as of 31 December 2015), the budget was €16.9 million and the auditors stated that the Agency’s accounts were reliable and transactions were legal and regular.
Our relationship with the European Union's decentralised bodies upon exit, including the European Agency for Safety and Health at Work, will be evaluated in light of delivering the twelve objectives outlined by the Prime Minister to achieve a deep and special positive and constructive partnership between the UK and the European Union.