Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what discussions he has had with stakeholders on the safe storage of chlorine gas after the UK leaves the EU.

The Government has made clear that health and safety requirements are not affected by the UK’s exit from the EU. The same requirements and duties will apply on the day of exit as applied the day before.

Storage of chlorine gas under 10 tonnes is controlled by health and safety regulations. However, if the quantity is over 10 tonnes, storage is controlled by the Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) Regulations 2015. These regulations will continue to apply following the UK’s exit from the EU. The COMAH Regulations put specific duties on businesses to ensure that highly dangerous substances such as chlorine are handled, stored and managed safely to reduce the risk of major accidents impacting people or the environment. The Health and Safety Executive has been providing specific advice to individual stakeholders on the storage of hazardous substances.