16 July 2009 – ICL inquiry report published

The Government has announced today that further changes will be made to strengthen the safety regime for Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) bulk installations, following the publication of the inquiry report into the explosion at ICL Plastics which killed nine people and seriously injured 33 people in Glasgow in 2004.

All commercial buried metallic LPG pipework will also be replaced as part of a joint systematic programme agreed between the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) and UKLPG.

The Government and the Lord Advocate of Scotland announced a joint independent inquiry and Lord Gill was appointed Chair.

Commenting on the report, Yvette Cooper, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, said:

"I would like to express my sincere sympathy and regret to the bereaved families and to the injured survivors. Every life lost is a tragedy for the families involved, and made harder to bear by the fact that this was an avoidable disaster. That is why this report is so important and why comprehensive action across the whole sector is needed to respond to Lord Gill’s recommendations and strengthen safety for the future.

"Although the Inquiry has made clear that primary responsibility for the safety of liquid petroleum gas lies with and should remain with the site user, I take very seriously the criticisms made of the safety regime over several decades. I welcome and agree with Lord Gill's recommendations that a systematic replacement of buried metallic pipework must be implemented and also that a sharper, clearer safety regime should be introduced. I have asked the chair and board of the Health and Safety Executive to report back to me within eight weeks addressing his criticisms and setting out how his recommendations can be taken forward to properly protect people for the future.

"I would like to thank Lord Gill and his team for the way in which they handled the Inquiry."

The Inquiry has established that while the site user was primarily responsible for ensuring that the working environment was safe, there were failings across the system which must be addressed.  It also raises questions as to the speed of the response from the HSE. 

The Government welcomes and accepts Lord Gill’s recommendation that a 'sharper, cleaner safety regime' is needed for LPG bulk installations.

The HSE has already announced a joint programme of work with UKLPG for the systematic replacement of buried LPG metallic pipework. Ministers have made clear this must now begin as a priority and have asked the HSE to look at how to ensure this can be completed as swiftly as practical.

Ministers will report back to Parliament on progress in the autumn before publishing a full response to Lord Gill's report early in the New Year.

The report has found a series of problems across the system which led to the accident. In the case of the site user, the report sets out serious failings in risk assessment, inspection and maintenance, among others. It also refers to both certain inadequacies in the LPG safety regime in which it operated in the mid 1970s and late 1980s and the urgency of HSE’s response since the explosion.

The report’s four phase action plan is:

• The replacement of metallic pipework and steel risers on a systematic and prioritised basis; and early inspection of all buildings that have a LPG supply to identify any hazardous features from the design or layout;
• The establishment of a permanent and uniform safety regime to govern the installation, maintenance, monitoring and replacement of all LPG systems, including clear guidance on responsibilities of supplier and user;
• The development of a continuing and planned safety regime, particularly in relation to the use of polyethylene pipes; and
• The improvement of communications between suppliers, users and HSE and also within HSE.

Notes to Editors:

1. The ICL Inquiry is also commonly referred to as the "Stockline Inquiry."
2. The report was delivered to Ministers on 1 July 2009 at the Scottish Government in Edinburgh.
3. On 11 May 2004, nine people died and 33 were injured at the ICL Plastics factory in Glasgow. LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) vapour, which had escaped from an on-site underground corroded metal pipe into the basement of the factory, ignited, causing an explosion, which resulted in the collapse of the four storey Victorian building. 
4. The factory manufactured plastics products and coatings.  At the time of the explosion, sixty six people worked at the premises. 
5. In November 2006, the Crown took proceedings on indictment against ICL Plastics Limited under Sections 2 and 4 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and against ICL Technical Plastics Limited under Sections 2 and 3 of that Act.  On 17 August 2007 at Glasgow High Court, the companies pled guilty to the charges.  On 28 August 2007, the two companies were each fined £200,000.

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