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(c) Shall treat as absolutely confidential the source of any complaint bringing totheir notice a defect or breach of legal provisions and shall give no intimation to the employer or his representative that a visit of inspection was made in consequence of the receipt of such a complaint. Article 16 Workplaces shall be inspected as often and as thoroughly as is necessary to ensurethe effective application of the relevant legal provisions. Article 17 1. Persons who violate or neglect to observe legal provisions enforceable by labour inspectors shall be liable to prompt legal proceedings without previous warning : Provided that exceptions may be made by national laws or regulations in respect of cases in which previous notice to carry out remedial or preventive measures is to be given. 2. It shall be left to the discretion of labour inspectors to give warning and advice instead of instituting or recommending proceedings. Article 18 Adequate penalties for violations of the legal provisions enforceable by labour inspectors and for obstructing labour inspectors in the performance of their duties shall be provided for by national laws or regulations and effectively enforced. Article 19 1. Labour inspectors or local inspection offices, as the case may be, shall be required to submit to the central inspection authority periodical reports on the results of their inspection activities. 2. These reports shall be drawn up in such manner and deal with such subjects as may from time to time be prescribed by the central authority; they shall be submitted at least as frequently as may be prescribed by that authority and in any case not less frequently than once a year. Article 20 1. The central inspection authority shall publish an annual general report on the work of the inspection services under its control. 2. Such annual reports shall be published within a reasonable time after the end of the year to which they relate and in any case within twelve months. 3. Copies of the annual reports shall be transmitted to the Director-General of the International Labour Office within a reasonable period after their publication and in any case within three months. Article 21 The annual report published by the central inspection authority shall deal with the following and other relevant subjects in so far as they are under the control of the said authority : (a) Laws and regulations relevant to the work of the inspection service : (b) Staff of the labour inspection service : (e) Statistics of workplaces liable to inspection and the number of workers employed therein : (d) Statistics of inspection visits : (e) Statistics of violations and penalties imposed : (/) Statistics of industrial accidents : (ff) Statistics of occupational diseases.

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