Calls for HSE Funding Boost After Years of Cuts

Why It Matters

Restoring HSE funding could revive enforcement capacity, lowering injuries and fatalities in high‑risk sectors, while expanding its remit addresses the growing occupational mental‑health crisis.

Key Takeaways

• HSE funding cut by 50% since 2010, inspectors down 33%
• Enforcement notices in construction fell 50% over four years
• Only 573 immediate prohibitions issued in 2025, lowest in five years
• Construction accounted for 35 of 124 UK workplace deaths last year

Pulse Analysis

The Health and Safety Executive has faced a steady erosion of resources since 2010, with its budget slashed by roughly half and its workforce trimmed by a third. This fiscal tightening has forced the regulator to prioritize reactive investigations over proactive inspections, eroding its ability to identify hazards before they cause harm. The decline in inspector headcount—from 1,045 in 2021 to 975 today—means fewer site visits, delayed enforcement actions, and a growing compliance gap across industries.

Construction firms feel the impact most acutely. Data from Construction News shows that the number of immediate prohibition and improvement notices issued to the sector has dropped by 50% compared with four years ago, with only 573 prohibitions recorded in 2025—the lowest in five years. Yet the sector still accounts for a disproportionate share of workplace fatalities, delivering 35 of the 124 deaths recorded across all UK industries last year. Non‑fatal injuries remain high, with 50,000 incidents over the past three years, underscoring the lingering safety challenges despite reduced enforcement visibility.

In response, the All‑Party Parliamentary Group on Occupational Safety and Health is pressing for a budget reset to pre‑2010 levels and a broadened HSE remit that includes work‑related suicides. By treating mental‑health‑related deaths with the same rigor as physical injuries, policymakers aim to close a critical investigative gap. If the government acts, employers can expect tighter oversight, renewed inspection cycles, and clearer guidance on emerging risks such as stress and workplace violence, ultimately fostering a safer, more resilient workforce.