Question

To ask the Senior Deputy Speaker, further to his Written Answer on 9 March (HL5913), what legislation gives the Clerk of Parliaments and the Clerk of the House the legal responsibility for safety on the Parliamentary Estate.

Under the powers conferred on the Clerk of the Parliaments by the Clerk of the Parliaments Act 1824 and the Parliamentary Corporate Bodies Act 1992, the Clerk of the Parliaments is the Corporate Officer of the House of Lords and acts as the employer of the great majority of staff in the House of Lords Administration. As such he meets the various health and safety duties imposed on employers under the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974 and regulations made under it (including the Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012). The Clerk of the Parliaments also has safety-related duties under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and, in relation to visitors, the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957.

The Clerk of the House of Commons, who is the Corporate Officer of that House by virtue of the Parliamentary Corporate Bodies Act 1992, has very similar powers, although he is not the employer of House of Commons staff. He shares the responsibility for the physical premises under the Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 and the Occupiers’ Liability Act 1957 with the Clerk of the Parliaments.