David Snowball, the HSE’s head of regulation, was appointed as acting chief executive on 15 June, and will now continue in that role until further decisions are made. 

Judge’s decision to “step down” was confirmed in a short statement from the HSE, which referred to Judge’s achievements in the past five years as “[building] on HSE’s strong regulatory framework and assurance to tackle workplace harm”, and said that he had “strengthened HSE’s capability”.

HSE chairman Martin Temple also said: “On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank Richard for his important contribution to our organisation and to helping to protect workers and the environment, and wish him well in the future.”

“Special leave” in the civil service is normally unpaid and connected with an individual’s personal or family circumstances.  

The fact that Judge was taking special leave over the summer was revealed in the HSE’s report and accounts 2017/18, published on its website last week. The document was signed off by Snowball on 10 July. 

Judge was appointed in November 2014 after a hiatus of over a year following the departure of the previous chief executive, Geoffrey Podger. He took over an organisation that was under pressure to rationalise and cut costs, as its funding allocation from central government shrank year on year.  

He has presided over an era of change: staff resources were slimmed down; the Fee for Intervention (FFI) regime was grudgingly accepted but failed to cover its costs; inspections became more targeted and the conviction rate improved, but proactive inspections declined. 

He also piloted the HSE’s Helping GB Work Well campaign and last year’s Work and Health Strategy, with its renewed focus on occupational health. In the background, efforts to generate commercial revenue and sell consultancy services overseas met with limited success. 

Clive Johnson, deputy president of IIRSM, praised Judge's integrative vision for Helping GB Work Well, as well as his support of the Health in Construction Leadership Group.  

He said: "Dr Judge has really changed industry's perception of the HSE and we at IIRSM welcomed this fresh approach.

“On behalf of IIRSM, I would like to thank Richard for his important contribution to our organisation and industry to helping to protect workers and the environment, and wish him well in the future.” 

Reacting to the news, a spokesperson for Unite said: “We are surprised at the departure of Richard Judge, but welcome David Snowball as his temporary replacement. We would like to see a change of direction for the HSE with increased resources and a greater emphasis on enforcement against those many employers who fail to meet basic health and safety standards.”

Dan Shears, national director for health, safety and the environment at the GMB, called on Department of Work and Pensions' minister Sarah Newton and the HSE board to move swiftly to replace Judge.

He commented: "In terms of replacement, the timing couldn't be more difficult. We are looking at Brexit in little more than six months, and this will create a huge range of issues around standards, regulations and international compatibility. The immediate challenges and need for an experienced chief executive make this a good time for the minister and the HSE board to consider an internal candidate." 

The report and accounts show that Judge’s final year at the helm of the HSE continued recent trends. As in 2016/17, there was a drop in the number of prosecutions, and the FFI regime ran at a deficit, failing to cover the HSE’s internal costs. 

The 2017/18 annual report also reveals that HSE chair Martin Temple changed his “working pattern” from three days a week to two in April 2017, and that ambitions to grow the HSE’s commercial income have stalled.

Here, we look in more detail at five themes in the report.

Prosecutions in decline

The annual report shows a continued decline in the number of prosecutions mounted by the HSE and – in Scotland – the Crown Office of the Procurator Fiscal. In 2017/18, there were 521 prosecutions, compared to 593 cases reaching court in 2016/17 and 711 in 2015/16.

The report points out that the 2017/18 figure is based on “live operational data” and is subject to change; last year’s provisional figure of 547 was later revised up to 593.

Asked for an explanation for the drop in prosecutions, the HSE suggested that this was a consequence of fewer serious incidents being reported to it in the first place, as well as the executive’s withdrawal from the regulation of care homes.

Its response said: “The majority of HSE prosecutions follow investigations into the most serious injuries and cases of ill health reported to HSE that meet HSE’s incident selection criteria.

“The numbers of injuries and cases of ill health reflect changes to, for example, the Reporting of Injuries, Diseases and Dangerous Occurrences Regulations (RIDDOR) and the increased scope of activity by the Care Quality Commission (CQC) in England”.

From 1 April 2015, responsibility for ensuring the health and safety of patients and service users in care homes registered with the CQC passed from the HSE to the CQC.

Any breaches occurring after that date would be investigated and enforced by the CQC.  

The conviction rate is fractionally lower than previous years, at a provisional 91% for 2017/18, compared to 93% in 2016/17 and 95% in 2015/16.

The report says that 89 prosecutions resulted in a custodial sentence, compared to 82 in 2016/17. 

Full FFI costs not recovered

The HSE is still failing to recover its costs from the FFI regime – with the gap between the funds raised and the costs expanding to £1.91m compared to £1.71m last year.

In 2016/17, the HSE raised £15.05m from FFI invoices presented to employers found to be in “material breach” of health and safety legislation, but the costs of operating the scheme were £16.96m.

According to last year’s report and accounts, FFI invoices brought in slightly less, at £14.93m, but the costs involved were also lower at £16.64m.

As well as FFI, the HSE runs three other regulatory schemes on a cost-recovery basis: for biocides and plant protection; the Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) scheme; and the enforcement of offshore safety legislation.

Of these, the COMAH scheme is also running at a deficit (of £1.71m), while the biocides regime is operating at a surplus and the offshore regulation is breaking even.

Insolvent companies

The report outlines the cost to the HSE of not being able to recover monies owed by insolvent companies – either via prosecution costs or the cost-recovery regimes above – but suggests that its exposure to these debts is lower than last year.

In a section headed “claims waived or abandoned”, the report shows that there were 1,121 cases, costing the HSE £1.2m. However, in 2015/16, there were 2,041 cases costing £1.67m.

In an explanation provided to Health and Safety at Work, the HSE said that “claims waived or abandoned is the write-off of debts owed to HSE due to insolvency or where it is judged not to be cost-effective to pursue.

“These are approved in advance by HM Treasury in accordance with HSE’s delegated authority. Debts resulting from the award of our prosecution costs through the Courts is part of this figure but it incorporates debts from all HSE’s cost-recovery activities.”

Treasury funding in decline

The HSE received £135.6m from the Treasury in 2017/18, but this is forecast to fall to £130.6m in 2018/19. Before Judge took up his post, in 2012/13, the HSE received £161.2m in funding from the Department of Work and Pensions. 

It generated £16.2m in commercial income undertaken for external organisations, compared to £15.5m a year previously. The report says that this was a “smaller increase than planned but with a strong order book and secured sales moving into 2018/19”.

It also says there is a “major focus on partnership working to extend commercial research”.

The HSE’s aim, according its 2015/16 business plan, was to increase its commercial income to £35m by 2020. Subsequent business plans did not mention a targeted figure.

Staff numbers down

The HSE has shaved its total staff bill compared to last year, with expenditure on salaries of £137.8m, as opposed to £140.6m in the 2016/17 report and accounts.

That is linked to a small decline in the overall number of staff, with the HSE employing 2,478 at 31 March 2018, compared to 2,524 a year previously. The fall is mostly in the category of “professional or specialist staff”, at 1,081 in March 2018 compared to 1,105.

The HSE lost only three “inspectors or visiting health and safety staff”, at 1,058 compared to 1,061.

It also had to pay £500,000 under the government’s apprenticeship levy but it only received £18,000 back from the government to cover training costs. However, it is likely to be able to recoup more of its outlay in 2018/19.

A note to the accounts say that the HSE faces a “small number” of claims by current and former employees, relating to employment tribunal and personal injury, which may result in compensation payments.