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DEPARTMENT: JUSTICE AND CONSTITUTIONAL DEVELOPMENT
REPUBLIC OF SOUTH AFRICA
NATIONAL ASSEMBLY
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PARLIAMENTARY QUESTION FOR ORAL REPLYÂ
QUESTION NO.:Â 1603
DATE OF PUBLICATION: 1 OCTOBER 2009
           Mrs N W A Michael (DA) to ask the Minister of Justice and
Constitutional Development:
(1)Â Â Â Â Â Â Whether all (a)(i) offices and (ii) sites of his department
and (b) entities reporting to him adhere to the Occupational
Health and Safety Act, Act 85 of 1993; if not, (aa) why not,
(bb) which facilities fail to adhere to the Act, (cc) where are
they situated, (dd) what (aaa) aspects of the Act does each such
facility not comply with and (bbb) action has been taken in each
case; if so, what are the relevant details;
(2)Â Â Â Â Â Â (a) how often should each facility be inspected and (b) when
last was each facility inspected?                      Â
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REPLY:
(1)(a)(b)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â I would like to inform the Honourable Member that all
offices, buildings and/or sites of my Department does comply
with the minimum requirements of the Occupational Health and
Safety Act, 85 of 1993. Â Through regular inspections undertaken,
certain buildings were identified in which minor shortfalls were
identified and remedial actions were put in place to rectify
these issues.
(2) (a)Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Â Each facility should be inspected at least once a
year.
b) It should be noted that the inspection of the facilities resides
with the Department of Public Works, as this Department is the
custodian of all state-owned immovable assets. Â It is therefore
requested that the Honourable Member approach the Department of
Public Works for further information in this regard.
 Furthermore, no major building works by my Department may be
performed without the consent and involvement of the Department
of Public Works.
However as an added intervention, the Department has a dedicated
unit that is responsible for ensuring and monitoring the
Occupational Health and Safety Act, Act. No 85 of 1993. Â In
relation to Health and Safety, my Department is also working
closely with Department of Labour for ad-hoc inspections and
advice.
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