HSE affected by safety law changesWorkplace safety has been put at risk over the past 10 years due to changes in health and safety policies, a report has revealed.
The report by the University of Liverpool and Liverpool John Moores University found that changes have made it difficult for the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) to enforce laws.
The report called 'Regulatory Surrender: death, injury and the non-enforcement of law', found that changes to health and safety resulted in a 69% drop in inspections made of businesses premises. It also found there was a 68% decline of investigations into health and safety incidents and there was a 48% reduction in prosecutions of companies who have breached HSE regulations.
The Government has recently announced a wide-ranging review of health and safety laws in response to claims that UK industry had been 'saturated' by health and safety legislation under the Labour government. Researchers at Liverpool, however, have found that the HSE's power to inspect and enforce health and safety regulations has been reduced, resulting in increased numbers of employers at risk from accident or injury at work.
Dr David Whyte, Reader in Sociology at the University of Liverpool, said: "The idea that health and safety has 'gone mad' does not seem to hold true. The collapse in inspection, investigation and enforcement has dramatically reduced the chances of businesses being detected and prosecuted for committing safety offences. Most serious injuries now are not even investigated."
Copyright (c) Press Association 2010
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