RoSPA hopes for evidence not myths in Lord Young's review

With the publication of Lord Young's review into health & safety law due soon, RoSPA has spoken out to say it is hoping for objective recommendations based on real evidence rather than previously-debunked myths.

The safety charity believes that, if they are to be taken seriously, the report's conclusions and proposals must be properly balanced against the indisputable evidence that work-related accidents and ill-health are blighting millions of lives and seriously damaging business productivity.

“Simply restating the populist perception that health and safety has 'gone over the top' will not do,” said Tom Mullarkey, RoSPA chief executive. “The myth that health & safety is out of control has been debunked many, many times over. On the occasions when poor safety judgements are made, they typically reflect inadequate decision-making on the part of an individual or the excessive demands of third parties rather than regulators who have actually been working hard to simplify things.”

RoSPA believes it is impossible to state strongly enough that going over the top on health & safety is a relatively small problem compared with the extent of work-related injuries and ill-health. In addition to the 180 workers killed in British workplaces in 2008/09, plus the 700 killed in work-related road accidents, 1.2 million workers were suffering from an illness they believed was caused or made worse by their current or past employment.