Health and Safety (Enforcing Authority) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997

In these Regulations—

• “the 1978 Order” means the Health and Safety at Work (Northern Ireland) Order 1978;

• “agricultural activities” includes horticulture, fruit growing, seed growing, dairy farming, livestock breeding and keeping, forestry, the use of land as grazing land, meadow land, osier land, market gardens and nursery grounds and the preparation of land for agricultural use;

• “common parts” in relation to any premises or part of any premises means those areas used by or for providing services to, or facilities for, any occupier of such premises or part in common with any other occupier of premises or part of any premises;

• “construction work” and “contractor” have the respective meanings assigned to them by regulation 2(1) of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19953;

• “the Department” means the Department of Economic Development;

• “dock premises” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Docks Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19894;

• “electricity system” does not include the electric lines situated upon the consumer’s side of the supply terminals together with any apparatus permanently connected or intended to be permanently connected thereto;

• “fairground” means any part of premises which is for the time being used wholly or mainly for the operation of any fairground equipment, other than a coin-operated ride, non-powered children’s playground equipment or a swimming pool slide;

• “gas” has the same meaning as in Part III of the Gas (Northern Ireland) Order 19965;

• “gas fittings” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19976;

• “gas system” does not include a portable or mobile appliance supplied with gas from a cylinder, or the cylinder, pipes and other fittings used for supplying gas to that appliance;

• “ionisation radiation” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Ionising Radiations Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19857;

• “livestock” means any creature kept for the production of food, wool, skins or fur or for the purpose of any agricultural activity;

• “mine” has the meaning assigned to it by section 156(1) of the Mines Act (Northern Ireland) 19698;

• “office activities” includes any activity for the purposes of administration, clerical work, handling money, telephone and telegraph operating and the production of computer software by the use of computers; and for this purpose “clerical work” includes writing, book-keeping, sorting papers, filing, typing, duplicating, machine calculating, drawing and the editorial preparation of matter for publication except where that preparation is on the premises where newspapers, magazines, periodicals or books are printed;

• “pleasure craft” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Docks Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1989;

• “preparation dangerous for supply” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging for Supply) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 19959;

• “quarry” has the meaning assigned to it by Article 2(2) of the Quarries (Northern Ireland) Order 198310;

• “railway” means any railway or tramway which in either case is used for the carriage of persons or goods;

• “substance dangerous for supply” has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Chemicals (Hazard Information and Packaging for Supply) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1995;

• “theatre” does not include a cinema;

• “transport undertaking” means an undertaking primarily engaged in the transport of passengers or goods;

• “veterinary surgery” has the meaning assigned to it by section 27(1) of the Veterinary Surgeons Act 196611;

• “work” in relation to a gas fitting has the meaning assigned to it by regulation 2(1) of the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1997;

• “zoo” means a zoological establishment within the meaning of section 12(1) of the Welfare of Animals Act (Northern Ireland) 197212.

In these Regulations, any reference to the enforcing authority for premises or parts of premises is a reference to the enforcing authority for the relevant statutory provisions in relation to those premises or parts, as the case may be, and to any activity carried on in them.

These Regulations shall have effect subject to any provisions made for enforcement responsibility by other Regulations made under the 1978 Order or by any of the existing statutory provisions.

These Regulations shall not apply to an industrial activity involving substances to which the Explosives Acts (Northern Ireland) 1875 to 197013 or the Explosives (Northern Ireland) Order 197214 applies.

Where the main activity carried on in non-domestic premises is specified in Schedule 1, the district council for the district in which those premises are situated shall be the enforcing authority for them and the Department shall be the enforcing authority in any other case.

Where any premises to which paragraph (1) relates are occupied by more than one occupier then each part separately occupied shall be regarded as being separate premises for the purposes of that paragraph.

This regulation shall have effect subject to regulation 5.

Where premises are mainly occupied by a body specified in paragraph (4) and are partly occupied by another person for the purpose of providing services at the premises for that body, the Department shall be the enforcing authority for the part of the premises occupied by that other person.

The Department shall be the enforcing authority for premises if the main activity carried on there is indoor sports and any district council has any duty under Article 6 of the 1978 Order in respect of those premises or any plant therein.