The gains made in improving safety on offshore rigs and platforms in the UK's oil and gas industry will wither unless companies maintain investment in training and development programmes, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has warned.

New figures from the organisation reveal that the industry is getting safer, with both major and fatal injury rates and hydrocarbon releases at the lowest level since the HSE began keeping records.

Hydrocarbon releases are seen as a common precursor to accidents and the HSE welcomed the drop in incident rates.

However, Ian Whewell, head of HSE's offshore division, warned: "A focus on training, together with identification and management of hazards and risks are key factors for preventing incidents."

The new figures follow a separate report from the HSE published last month which showed that safety challenges remain in the offshore industry, despite widespread improvements in training and development frameworks.