Minutes of the 120 meeting of the board of the Health and Safety for Northern Ireland held on Thursday 5 May at the Crown Plaza Hotel, Belfast at 9.30am.
Present:
Board Members:
- Mr D Martin – Chair
- Mr H Sinclair
- Mr T Wright
- Mr S McDowell
- Mr A Cooke
- Mrs S Rooney
- Mr G Strong
- Mrs C Irwin
- Dr P Hart
HSENI Officials:
- Mr R Kidd - Chief Executive (CEO)
- Dr B Monson - Deputy Chief Executive
- Mrs N Monson - Deputy Chief Executive
- Mr K Neeson - Deputy Chief Executive
- Mr M Ditchfield - HSENI
- Mr P Hughes - HSENI
- Ms L Nelson - Minutes
The Chair welcomed everyone to the 120 meeting of the HSENI Board. The Chair thanked Mr Mungavin for facilitating the Board Workshop on 4 May 2022 and L Burns for his presentation at the workshop. The Chair also thanked everyone in attendance for their comments and contributions on the day.
1. Apologies
None to report.
2. Corporate health, safety and welfare
The Chief Executive reported that there were no issues to report.
3. Declaration of Conflict of Interest(s)
None to report.
4. Minutes
The minutes of the Board meeting held on 27 January 2022 were circulated to Board members prior to the meeting. The minutes were approved and adopted.
5. Matters Arising
Action point number one in relation to review of information to be presented at future board meetings has been completed as this was discussed at the Board workshop on 4 May 2022.
B Monson presented the update report on the Farm Safety Partnership (FSP) to the Board members. He highlighted the fact that the number of fatalities has been amended to six for the 2021 calendar year as the Coroner had ruled natural causes for one case. He reported that the Partnership’s focus this year would be to re-engage in one to one and face to face activities alongside use of the media, social media and other online outlets.
B Monson reported that the Department for Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) Special Adviser has been in contact to say that the DAERA Minister is prepared to assist the Farm Safety Partnership in providing demonstrations at Agriculture shows. This will be followed up after the Balmoral Show.
C Irwin commented it was good to receive the report to see the amount of activities undertaken by the FSP and thanked Dr Monson for the report.
H Sinclair stated that he has been involved in the Partnership since the first programme was launched ten years ago this week. He commended all partners for the work they carry out.
The CEO thanked B Monson and the Agri-food team for their attendance at Farming Marts during May on Saturday mornings from 7:00am.
A Cooke, a member of the Farm Safety Partnership, reported that he was pleased to be involved in the Partnership, and that everyone was focused, committed and engaged.
The Chair stated that there is an increasing involvement from industry over the last five years, adding that industry is now taking more responsibility in relation to health and safety in farming.
The Chair, on behalf of the Board, thanked B Monson.
6. Audit and Risk Management Committee (ARMC) Report
The ARMC met on 14 April 2022. The ARMC Chair thanked D Mullan for the hard work in producing the papers for the ARMC meeting.
The following areas were highlighted by the ARMC Chair as having been discussed at the latest ARMC meeting:
Matters arising and action points discussed
ARMC agreed to remove the action point on staff training on the Business Continunity Plan (BCP). Senior Management Team (SMT) are to ensure the BCP will be reviewed within the next year and the ARMC Committee are to be updated on the review.
Internal audit update
Two final audits on Inspections and Enforcement and Legislation. Both received ‘Satisfactory’ opinions. One point was raised in relation to the Legislation audit and 13 pieces of outstanding Legislation. L Burns assured the ARMC Committee this posed no major vulnerabilities to the organisation.
Internal audit follow up report
They confirmed that Management had completed all actions in relation to the recommendations.
GDPR Recommendations
A lengthy discussion took place in relation to these and it was agreed to remove the recommendations that are out of HSENI’s control. An update paper would be provided at each meeting on the recommendations to allow ARMC to have a clear line of sight of them.
Internal Audit Annual Assurance Report
Five areas audited during the year all achieved a ‘Satisfactory’ opinion rating, providing assurance on governance within HSENI.
Internal Audit Plan 2022/23
The ARMC Committee agreed the five areas to be audited in 2022/23.
External Audit
The ARMC Chair and the CEO raised concerns with the External Auditor on ‘Other risk factors’ the Northern Ireland Audit Office (NIAO) had identified on the NIAO Strategy document. The CEO followed up in writing to NIAO asking for them to consider changing the commentary in the document. Ross Boyd Ltd replied that the comments will remain unchanged, however they will take the CEO’s comments on board during the audit.
Risk register
The ARMC Chair reported that he is confident that HSENI’s SMT ensures all risks are managed. The ARMC Chair highlighted an emerging risk in relation to unforeseen work from third parties impacting on the planned work of SMT. He stated that he reminded SMT of their own wellbeing and their workloads. The Chair asked for the non-core work issues to be clarified. The CEO explained that in recent weeks he has received letters in relation to a potential judicial review which could have ramifications for the organisation in the future and a public inquiry taking place. L Burns also reported that this time of the year involves the end of year accounts as well as drafting of the new operating plan and this extra unplanned work takes up a lot of SMT’s time as it cannot be delegated to staff. The Chair asked that the ARMC Committee keep a close watch on this emerging risk and that the CEO updates the Board as necessary.
The ARMC Chair thanked the new members of the ARMC for their work carried out in the background during the audits.
The Chair, on behalf of the Board thanked T Wright and the Committee for the work carried out at the ARMC meetings. The Chair thanked D Mullan for her work preparing the papers for the ARMC meetings.
7. Board Member Site Visits Updates
The Chair asked G Strong, S McDowell and A Cooke to update the members on their recent site visits with HSENI Inspectors.
G Strong visited a factory in Omagh on 25 April with HSENI inspector, P Kelly. G Strong complimented P Kelly on his demeanour and approach during the visit and his ability to retrieve the information he needed from the two Health and Safety Managers in the factory. He said that the respect from the Health and Safety Managers towards P Kelly was noticeable. G Strong thoroughly enjoyed the visit and would recommend all Board members to attend a site visit.
S McDowell visited two transport companies on 28 April with HSENI Principal Inspector, K McNamara. S McDowell reported although the two sites were both transport, they were two very different visits. He reported that K McNamara was very professional and the first company accepted all improvements that she requested. During the second visit, the company asked K McNamara for help and guidance. He thoroughly enjoyed the visits.
A Cooke visited a manufacturing firm in Lisburn on 25 April with HSENI inspector, K Murphy. A Cooke reported that K Murphy was very professional in her approach to the company. The visit was unannounced as HSENI had received an anonymous complaint. The company was very engaging and receptive to K Murphy. K Murphy provided valuable advice to the company. A Cooke stated that the inspectors are the public face of HSENI and that they provide an excellent image to the public.
G Strong asked if the Board would consider a rolling programme of site visits for Board members as he would be keen to visit other sectors. The Chair agreed site visits can be arranged by agreement with Heads of Group (HOG) and as operational conditions allow.
The visits gave the board members an opportunity to see at first hand the options available to HSENI inspectors in its enforcement armoury.
The Chair thanked all for their feedback.
8. Chief Executive’s Report
The Chief Executive highlighted the following areas and asked the Board for comments on what they would like included in his report going forward:
- Covid-19 still impacting on staff absences as some staff have contracted it for the second time
- the Departement of Health (DoH) Minister has not withdrawn the Working at Home guidance, HSENI continues to use Ladas Drive for essential use only
- assembly business and correspondence cases
- fatal accidents - figures correct at time of the report but need to be amended
- meetings / events attended
- prosecutions, court activity starting to increase
- Quarterly Monitoring Report (QMR) – some objectives not achieved due to Covid-19, work pressures and other work activities
- appointment of Market Surveillance staff
Board comments on Chief Executive’s Report
The Chair stated that as the report deals with current issues, it is important that the Board is advised on these. It is useful to have sight of the meetings and events attended by the CEO and SMT. Is there too much in the Quarterly Monitoring Return (QMR) and could this be looked at by exception?
T Wright stated as the QMR looks at all activities going on across all sectors it is a valuable tool to show how the objectives contribute to the Corporate Plan. He finds the explanation useful and enables him to question if there are vulnerabilities.
C Irwin likes the style of the Chief Executive’s report. She believes that the QMR needs to be looked at every quarter, stating that objectives from the Operating Plan need to be discreet.
In relation to Annex 2 (CMS Statistics Report) of the Chief Executive’s report, C Irwin asked if trends could also be included as the report consisted of numbers but with no accompanying information. S Rooney expressed agreement with C Irwin in relation to this report. A lengthy discussion took place in relation to the presentation of stats in this report and being able to monitor trends on a quarterly basis. The need for the Board to receive this report was also discussed as this document was initially designed for operational teams. The Chair and P Hart asked what happens with the information in the report. B Monson stated the information in this report is used by SMT and Heads of Group (HoG) when deciding what to include on the Operating Plan.
T Wright stated this this report was a working document for the organisation. The Board monitors progress of objectives via the quarterly monitoring return and asked if this report was needed. N Monson agreed with T Wright, stating that assurance is provided by other means. T Wright stated that the Board needs to have confidence in SMT and the day to day running of HSENI. At year end the Board can then question SMT and ask what intervention strategies they used throughout the year. T Wright is content to stop receiving this report.
G Strong stated that he likes the format of the Annex 2 – statistics report and suggested using it as an appendix. It was agreed that going forward in Section 5 of the main Chief Executive’s report under ‘Fatal Accidents’, bullet points would be included highlighting trends when necessary and continue with Annex 2.
- Action: Bullet points highlighting trends to be included in Section 5 of the Chief Executive’s report if necessary
S Rooney commented on the minimal fines in Annex 3 Prosecutions. A discussion took place in relation to the issuing of fines.
Annex 1 the fatalities report was discussed and it was agreed to anonymise this report. The name of the deceased and the location to be removed from the document and a column including ‘M’ or ‘F’ for male or female to be added.
- Action: Names of deceased and location to be removed from Annex 1 and a column added to indicate male or female.
S McDowell asked if the HR Report would return to quarterly as the risk register is now going to be issued annually to the Board. A discussion took place in relation to the HR report. The Chair reported that he would like the HR report to stay on the Board agenda as a standing item.
9. Draft Operating Plan
L Burns presented the draft Operating Plan to the Board, stating that the common priorities had yet to be updated. SMT was keen to let the Board have sight of the first draft. He reported that this Operating Plan is linked to the final year of the current Corporate Plan and that HSENI included more numerical targets to make them more measurable. HoG have looked at trends / spikes in each sector and each target states where it contributes to the Corporate Plan.
S McDowell asked what the figure for inspections would be this year. B Monson informed him that it should be between 4,000 and 5,000 as there will be an increase in site visits with the trainee inspectors carrying out visits.
C Irwin stated she can see an improvement in target outputs but there is room for improvement on the quarterly monitoring.
The Board noted the draft Operating Plan and will be forwarded the final document once it has been completed.
10. HR Report
K Neeson updated the Board in relation to the HR Report attached to the risk register and the following items were highlighted:
Sickness Absence:
85.3% of HSENI staff had no sickness absence throughout Q3, October – December 2021. The number of working days lost per staff year equivalent is 3.5 days. K Neeson assured the Board that SMT has no concerns in relation to sickness absence within HSENI.
Staffing Matters
At 31 March 2022 there were 121 staff in post including eight NI Protocol staff.
HSENI’s baseline staff complement is 122 staff.
Staffing Matters – NI Protocol
NI Protocol funding of £1,128,000 was allocated to HSENI for 2021/2022 financial year. The funding is provided on an annual basis.
A discussion took place in relation to the HR report and the need for HR details to be reported to the Board.
All agreed that it is important that the ARMC and the Board are kept abreast of HR within the organisation.
The HR report will stay on the Board agenda and HR will be reported on quarterly.
- Action: HR Report to stay on the Board Agenda
11. Finance Report
The following items on the Finance report were highlighted by M Ditchfield:
- explanation of budget situation as at 26 April 2022
- budget tolerance - HSENI missed the 1% tolerance underspend and came in at 2.5%. M Ditchfield explained a reason for this was the start date of the trainee inspectors - the CEO agreed, stating he was disappointed that HSENIdid not achieve the 1% tolerance as per previous years, the CEO asked the Board to note this was unlikely to happen on a regular basis and that the delay until Q4 in recruiting a number of staff was most likely the reason, the CEO assured the Board that he would make the same decision again to recruit in Q4, and that whilst he could have pushed the start date for the trainee inspectors back until 1 April 2022, there were also a number of risks associated with this option
M Ditchfield said that he had been liaising with the Department to make them aware of the situation. The Department has no big concerns as it was not an overspend and only a small underspend.
T Wright stated that historically HSENI has always ended the financial year within the 1% tolerance and asked if there would be any issues because HSENI did not this year. M Ditchfield assured him that provisional outturns have been provided to the Department highlighting the fact.
The Chair commented that an overview of budget spreadsheet provides good financial management and that with the level of recruitment over the period, it is difficult to get a high level of accuracy with spend.
The Chair thanked M Ditchfield for the update.
12. Legislation Report
L Burns reported progress in relation to the delivery of HSENI’s Legislative Programme since the previous report and asked if the Board had any questions.
The Chair asked if there were any areas of risk to the organisation. L Burns stated there was no areas of risk to highlight. New submissions for EU Exit Regulations will be issued once a new Minister is in place.
T Wright asked for an update on the 13 pieces of outstanding legislation delayed due to NI Protocol work. L Burns reported that the team is starting to work through the NI Domestic Regulations with two pieces recently coming into operation.
The Board noted the remainder of the report.
13. EU Exit
K Neeson updated the Board on EU Exit preparations, stating that vacancies in the Chemicals and Product Safety teams had been filled in January 2022 and that the teams were settling in well. A further two new members will commence work in June 2022.
K Neeson asked if this verbal update was required to stay on the agenda as vacancies have been filled in the teams. The Chair commented he was happy to hear reports on EU Exit by exception.
- Action: EU Exit – Verbal Update to be removed from the Board agenda
14. Any Other Business (AOB)
The Chief Executive asked the Board members for any comments on HSENI’s Risk Appetite Statement on Annex 2 of the Risk Management Policy. All agreed they were content with the Risk Appetite. It was noted and approved by the Board.
The Chair asked everyone for comments under AOB. T Wright commented that the Board workshop on the previous day and the meeting had been good in allowing the Board to get together face to face and that it bodes well for the future.
M Ditchfield extended thanks to P Hughes for his role in the finance team and year end accounts.
The Chair informed all that the 23 June Board meeting and ARMC meeting would not need to take place as the Annual Report and Accounts have been deferred until later in the year. The Chair asked the Board Members to hold the date as he may organise a follow-up to the Board workshop.
The Chair thanked all for attending.
15. Date of next Board Meeting
The next Board meeting will be held on Thursday 28 July 2022 at 09:30am.
The meeting ended at 13:05pm.