Legal framework and regulations

Energy Act 2013

ONR is formally established by Part 3 of the Energy Act, and a Commencement Order brought the relevant sections and the organisation into being.

Other legislation that underpins the legal framework for the nuclear industry includes:

• Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 Employers are responsible for ensuring the safety of their workers and the public.
• Nuclear Installations Act 1965 (NIA) A site cannot have a nuclear plant unless the user has been granted a site licence by ONR.  Only a corporate body can hold such a licence.
• Ionising Radiations Regulations 2017 Provides for protection of workers in all industries from ionising radiations and by the general health and safety regulation which ONR also enforces at nuclear sites.
• Nuclear Industries Security Regulations 2003 ONR Civil Nuclear Security and Safeguards (CNSS) conducts its regulatory activities, approving security arrangements within the industry and enforcing compliance under the authority of these regulations.