The New Zealand Government is to establish a new national health and safety regulator.

The launch of WorkSafe New Zealand – a stand-alone Crown agency – was recommended by the royal commission on the 2010 Pike River coalmine disaster, in which 29 miners were killed.

The Government aims to cut workplace fatalities and serious injury by 25% this decade.

WorkSafe will begin operations in December under Acting CEO Geoffrey Podger, who was previously CEO of the UK Health and Safety Executive.

A career bureaucrat, Mr Podger also served as the inaugural CEO of the UK Food Standards Agency and executive director of the European Food Safety Authority.