Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to consult on health and safety protections for night workers.

Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 all employers have a duty, so far as it is reasonably practicable, to protect the health, safety, and welfare at work of all their employees. Specifically, the Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999 require employers to assess the health and safety risks to employees, to which they are exposed whilst they are at work, and to put in place arrangements to control those risks.

Reducing ill health at work is an important area of focus for the Health and Safety Executive, as outlined in their strategic objectives, however there are no current plans to consult on health and safety protections for night workers.