REGULATION AND INSPECTION SUPPORT RADIATION PROTECTION IN NUCLEAR ANDOTHER INSTALLATIONS

Over the past fifty years, radiation protection legislation in the UK has developed from a narrow industry-specific base to a comprehensive package of regulations and supporting Approved Code of Practice,with a dditional provisions for nuclear installations. Development of this le gislation mirrors progress in international understanding about the ri sks from exposure to ionising radiation. The current Ionising Radiatio ns Regulations 1985 largely implement the Euratom 1980 Basic Safety St andards Directive and place particular emphasis on the need to keep ex posures as low as reasonably practicable. The regulations have been un derpinned by the development of the concept of the Tolerability of Ris k and the application of the ALARP/ALARA principle, particularly at nu clear installations. Analysis of dose data on HSE's Central Index of D ose Information has shown the general success of this approach in the UK; the data have also allowed targeting of inspection effort. Current ly, the Health and Safety Commission and Executive are developing plan s for implementing the revised EU Basic Safety Standards Directive.