The number of enforcement notices issued by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) against companies for breaching health and safety laws rose by one-fifth last year, as new figures showed the state of  workplace-related ill health in the UK.

Geoffrey Podger, HSE chief executive, says: "Last year, the HSE issued 20 % more notices and industry was fined more than £13m for flouting health and safety laws."

The statistics from the Health and Safety Commission showed that 241 employees were killed at work, and that 30 million days were lost because of work-related ill health, and six million because of workplace injury.

More than 140, 000 workplace accidents were reported last year, resulting in employees suffering injuries such as amputations, chemical burns and fractures.

More than two million people were suffering from an illness they believed was caused or made worse by their current or past employment, with 646,000 new cases in the past 12 months.

New Health and Safety Commission chair Judith Hackitt added:  "The rising enforcement figures show that negligence in workplace health and safety is not tolerated.”