Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment her Department his made of the adequacy of health and safety training standards required by employers for (a) commercial divers, (b) seafarers and (c) technicians for employment the offshore wind industry.

It is a legal duty on all employers within the offshore wind industry to provide sufficient information, instruction and training to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health and safety of people in their employment and others who may be affected. It is a matter for each individual employer to decide on how that information, instruction and training is provided, commensurate to the risks.

HSE does not have a statutory responsibility to approve training courses or standards for the sector. In 2012, HSE created a dedicated team to regulate the sector and that team has conducted inspections and investigations at offshore wind farms, enforcing health and safety legislation in accordance with HSE’s policies and procedures. Where HSE has identified that a duty holder has not provided suitable information, instruction and training, then it has taken action in accordance with its Enforcement Policy Statement (https://www.hse.gov.uk/enforce/enforcepolicy.htm).