Local authorities must prioritise improvements in health and safety at work

Citation

(2001), "Local authorities must prioritise improvements in health and safety at work", Facilities, Vol. 19 No. 1/2. https://doi.org/10.1108/f.2001.06919aab.013

Local authorities must prioritise improvements in health and safety at work

Local authorities must prioritise improvements in health and safety at work

Health and Safety Commission Chair, Bill Callaghan, called on all local authorities to give health and safety a greater priority in order to meet tough improvement targets for cutting work-related deaths, injuries and ill-health in Great Britain.

Mr Callaghan was speaking at the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health Annual Conference in Harrogate, Yorkshire recently. He said; "Local authorities have a leading role to play in enforcing health and safety in high growth sectors of the new economy, as well as tackling major occupational health issues such as violence, stress, musculoskeletal disorders and passive smoking.

"First and foremost, they need to gather accurate data through which to target their efforts. I was struck at the launch of the HELA report by the lack of data on occupational health in the local authority enforced sectors and we must look again at whether resources are being targetted at areas where they can deliver the most benefit.

"Although I have witnessed impressive examples of effort and innovation by many local authorities – and there are excellent good practice case studies in the HELA Annual Report – the evidence shows that not all local authorities are making adequate arrangements for the enforcement of health and safety law."

Mr Callaghan identified other key areas which local authorities might look at to help meet national targets:

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  Build the relationship with small firms in the pursuit of health and safety goals.

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  Local authorities to look at whether they are making the best use of the available levers for enforcement, for example, via the building control system, their role in planning and community development, crime and community safety, home and water safety, education and licensing.

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  The enforcement role carried by local authorities makes them ideally placed to emphasise to companies, trade associations and other representative bodies that they must set targets, develop their own action plans and publish their committment to the new "Revitalising Health and Safety" agenda launched by the Deputy Prime Minister last June.

Mr Callaghan concluded, "Time is short and the targets are hard. I expect local authorities to use their full enforcement powers where necessary and appropriate."

The Revitalising Health and Safety strategy statement was launched by Bill Callaghan and the Deputy Prime Minister on 7 June 2000. It includes a 44-point action plan which aims to achieve, by the year 2010, the following targets: reduce the incidence of working days lost from work-related injury and ill-health by 30 per cent; reduce the incidence of people suffering from work-related ill-health by 20 per cent; reduce the rate of fatal and major injuries and accidents by 10 per cent.

Copies of the Safety Statistics Bulletin 1999/00, MISC 231 and the 2000 HELA Annual Report, can be ordered, free of charge, online at http://www.hsebooks.co.uk or are available from HSE Books, PO Box 1999, Sudbury, Suffolk CO10 2WA. Tel: +44 (0)1787-881165; Fax: +44 (0)1787 313995. For further information call HSE's InfoLine, Tel: +44 (0) 8701 545500, or write to HSE Information Centre, Broad Lane, Sheffield S3 7HQ, UK.

Edited by Jenny Pickles, MCB University Press

The Editor welcomes details of new initiatives worldwide. Please e-mail jpickles@mcb.co.uk or mail to: Jenny Pickles, New Developments Section Editor, Facilities, MCB University Press, 60/62 Toller Lane, Bradford, West Yorkshire, BD8 9BY, UK.