The Mineral Workings (Offshore Installations) Act 1971 (1971 chapter 61) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provided for the safety, health and welfare of people on installations undertaking the exploitation of, and exploration for, mineral resources in UK offshore waters. Background The exploration for natural gas under the United Kingdom’s sector of the North Sea began in 1964. The first gas was found in September 1965 by the self-elevating drilling rig Sea Gem. Tragically, on 27 December 1965 Sea Gem collapsed and sank 43 miles east of the Humber. Thirteen of the crew of 32 were killed. A tribunal was appointed in February 1967 to establish the circumstances of the accident. The hearing lasted 29 days, and the tribunal report was published on 26 July 1967. The report identified that statutory provisions for regulating the safety of offshore installations, together with credible sanctions, should be available for installations working on the United Kingdom continental shelf. The Mineral Workings (Offshore Installations) Act 1971, enacted these measures which gave the Government the powers to regulate the safety, health and welfare on offshore installations. Mineral Workings (Offshore Installations) Act 1971 The Mineral Workings (Offshore Installations) Act 1971(1971 c. 61) received Royal Assent on 27 July 1971. Its long title is: ‘An Act to provide for the safety, health and welfare of persons on installations concerned with the underwater exploitation and exploration of mineral resources in the waters in or surrounding the United Kingdom, and generally for the safety of such installations and the prevention of accidents on or near them.’ The 1971 Act was enabling legislation giving the Secretary of State the power to make appropriate Regulations. Provisions The Act comprised 14 Sections and a Schedule 1. Application of Act – applies to underwater exploration and exploitation 2. Registration of offshore installations – power of the Secretary of State to make Regulations for Registration 3. Construction and survey regulations for offshore installations – power of the Secretary of State to make Regulations for construction and survey 4. Managers of offshore installations – originally ‘Masters’’ – under the charge of an appointed person. 5. Managers of offshore installations, further provisions – originally ‘Masters’’ – ‘shall not be absent’, responsibilities, disobedience and fines, not to be used in an unsafe manner, emergencies, securing safety 6. Safety regulations – power of the Secretary of State to make Regulations for safety, health