THE Duke of York displayed a cheeky sense of humour as he opened the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) new HQ on Merseyside yesterday.
Prince Andrew joked about the £57m building's complex design, saying staff could become lost trying to find their way around.
And he even spotted a broken glass panel in the ceiling, urging executives to get it replaced before they got embroiled in a Health and Safety investigation of their own.
The Duke made his tongue-in-cheek comments as he unveiled a plaque at the development in Bootle, which consists of seven buildings connected by a glass atrium. Watched by scores of workers lining the balconies overhead, he said: "It's an enormous pleasure to be able to come and join you this afternoon to open this magnificent building.
"I know that you were in a number of separate buildings before you were here and I am sure there are a lot of you who have never met each other.
"What slightly concerns me is that everyone is now in separate buildings on separate floors, so you are still not going to meet each other.
"I think they should muddle you all up and see if you can find your way back."
After spotting the broken ceiling panel, he joked: "I hope you all enjoy working in this building, and I hope someone is going to replace that window before it breaks and crashes on somebody and causes a Health and Safety incident."
The Duke, who acts as a trade ambassador for the Government, praised the work of the HSE.
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