Confined Spaces Regulations 2025 - Health and Safety Legislation Consultations

The Department of Environment, Food and Agriculture (DEFA) has been reviewing specific UK Health and Safety legislation to form a judgment on whether the Island would benefit from greater alignment with UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) standards. As part of that process, consideration has also been given to whether this UK HSE legislation would enhance public and worker safety for offshore energy developments. This process has culminated in public consultation of specific draft legislation, with the starting point for most of the legislation being existing UK legislation. 

DEFA has welcomed stakeholder and public feedback on the proposed health and safety legislation, and where appropriate any associated guidance documentation, through this public consultation process. 

Respondents generally support the proposed Regulations and broader alignment with UK standards but highlighted that success will depend on practical implementation. In particular, respondents emphasised the need for clear, user-friendly regulations, realistic timescales, and sufficient capacity, especially in training and specialist support, to enable organisations to comply. There were also calls for stronger coordination, guidance, and engagement with industry to ensure the changes are understood and can be delivered effectively in practice.

The DEFA Health and Safety at Work Inspectorate (HSWI) is grateful to all those who took the time to consider and respond to this consultation.

Due to the December 2025 holiday period and the limited number of initial responses received, it was decided to extend the closing date of the outstanding health and safety legislation consultations to 31 March 2026.  

The consultation process and responses received informed the Department’s assessment of the benefits of the proposed legislation. All consultation responses were considered in detail, alongside direct engagement with relevant Manx businesses. The consultation process has therefore informed the Department’s decision making. Having considered all available information, the Department has decided to pause the introduction of this tranche of legislation until further notice.

Further engagement between DEFA HSWI and the UK Health and Safety Executive (HSE) will take place in June 2026. Should the Department subsequently decide to proceed with the introduction of any of the draft legislation, this will first be reviewed against the latest position of the relevant UK legislation and updated where necessary. If any substantive changes are made as a result, a further public consultation exercise may be undertaken.