Safety community has crucial role, says RoSPA

Following the announcement this week of cuts to health and safety inspections as part of a number of changes to Britain’s health and safety system, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents has argued the health and safety community has an even more critical preventative and advisory role to play.

Roger Bibbings, RoSPA’s Occupational Safety Adviser, said:

“The Health and Safety Executive is having to refocus its efforts to operate within a budget that is being reduced by 35% by 2014-15. We welcome the Government's intention to concentrate enforcement on cowboy employers and to charge them, where necessary, for the cost of this work.

“We also want to feed into the review which the Government has announced of the architecture of health and safety regulation. The number of separate regulations has grown over the years, although we continue to take the view that there is nothing essentially wrong with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, which lies at the heart of health and safety law and has proportionality built in. However, we fully agree that, where possible, the structure of both regulatory duties and accompanying guidance should be simplified so they are easier to understand and apply.”

The TUC has warned, however, of an increase in accidents as a result of the cuts in health and safety inspections. Said TUC General Secretary, Brendan Barber:

“Employers need to know that there is the possibility of a safety inspector visiting, otherwise there will be no incentive for them to ensure they are protecting their workers.

“Removing proactive inspections from a large number of workplaces mean that employers can get away with ignoring the law until they kill or seriously injure someone.”

He added:

“The proposals are not only bad for workers' health and safety, they will also be bad for the economy as the health service and benefits system have to deal with the aftermath of more injuries and illnesses caused through unsafe work.”

Alexander Ehmann, Head of Regulation at the Institute of Directors, backed the changes, saying the Government had grasped the nettle on health and safety.

"The commitment to a full review of existing health and safety law under Professor Ragnar Lofstedt has the potential to be a ‘game-changer’ and the IoD will be making early suggestions on ways to ease the burden on business.”