2019 No. 1241

Social Security

The Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Prescribed Diseases) Amendment Regulations 2019

Made

Laid before Parliament

Coming into force

The Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, after reference to the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council1, makes the following Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 108(1) and (2), 109(2) and (3)(a) and 175(1) and (3) to (5) of the Social Security Contributions and Benefits Act 19922.

The Secretary of State is satisfied of the matters to which section 108(2)(a) and (b) of that Act refers.

Citation and commencement1

These Regulations may be cited as the Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Prescribed Diseases) Amendment Regulations 2019 and come into force on 9th December 2019.

Amendment of the Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Prescribed Diseases) Regulations 19852

1

The Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Prescribed Diseases) Regulations 19853 are amended as follows.

2

In regulation 4(2)4 (presumption that a disease is due to the nature of employment), after “A14,” insert “A15,”.

3

In Part 1 of Schedule 1 (list of prescribed diseases and the occupations for which they are prescribed), after the entry for prescribed disease A145, insert—

A15 Dupuytren’s contracture of the hand resulting in fixed flexion deformity of one or more inter-phalangeal joints of one or more of the digits.

Any occupation involving the use of hand-held powered tools whose internal parts vibrate so as to transmit that vibration to the hand (but excluding those tools which are solely powered by hand) where -

  1. a

    the use of those tools amounts to a period or periods in aggregate of at least 10 years;

  2. b

    within that period or those periods, the use of those tools amounts to at least 2 hours per day for 3 or more days per week; and

  3. c

    the onset of the disease fell within the period or periods of use specified in this paragraph.

Signed by authority of the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions

Justin TomlinsonMinister of StateDepartment for Work and Pensions
EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

Regulation 2 of these Regulations amends the Social Security (Industrial Injuries) (Prescribed Diseases) Regulations 1985 (S.I. 1985/967).

In a report (published as Command Paper Cm 8860 on 8th May 20146), the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council recommended that Dupuytren’s contracture, arising from work for ten years or more in aggregate which involves the use of hand-held powered tools, be prescribed as a disease. As a result of these Regulations, the prescribed disease is presumed to be due to the nature of a person’s employed earner’s employment. The amendments made by regulation 2 add Dupuytren’s contracture to the list of diseases for which Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit is payable.

Hard copies of the report may be obtained from the Department for Work and Pensions, IIDB Policy, Disability Employment and Support Directorate, 3 South E, Quarry House, Leeds, LS2 7UA.

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.