Optimisation of Decision Making

Similarly, in the United Kingdom, the workforce involvement is qnite an important aspect of the health and safely regime. However, unlike in Norway, the regulator is not a direct party to dialogues between the workforce and the employers insofar as health and safety of offshore work is concerned. The dialogue is between the employees and the operators, and usually takes place in preparation of the safety cases and, since 2006, in the periodic reviews of, or in the revisions of, the safety cases.  

In both countries, however, the involvementofthe workforce concerns predominantly the processes and activities of the employer. In Norway, there is an element of influencing future policies of the regulator via the Safety Forum, but outside of this the involvement not just of the workforce but any or all of the stakeholders is 1 imited both in Norway and the United Kingdom. This is especially true when it comes to the decisionmaking process of the regulator in carrying out its inspection services. 

Currently in the United Kingdom, the HSE is deemed to have a sophisticated inspection regime with independent third-party verification system for well design and safety-critical elements offshore. Interestingly, these verifications are conducted not by another governmental agency but by entities in the industry such as 

See Chapters ro (Bang and Thuastad) and 12 (Rosness and Forseth) in this volume for a discussion on the events surrounding, and leading to, the establishment of Safety Fomm. 

Offshore Installations (Safety Case) Regulations 2005 (SI 2005/3117) Schedule 2, para. 3 amending the Offshore Installations (Safety Representatives and Safety Committees) Regulations 1989 (SI 1989/971). 

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