From the CEO's desk

With the year 2010 behind us and 2011 now in full swing, the eyes and ears of the health and safety industry will continue to fix on the Government as it firms up new plans and procedures to support the advancement of the health and safety industry.

Lord Young's report, 'Common Sense, Common Safety' touched on many matters that needed to be addressed and the BSIF is confident its common sense approach will help to overcome some of the problems currently faced in the marketplace. The BSIF was pleased to be involved in discussions regarding the accreditation of safety professionals and to be involved in the ongoing process to create a new national register of occupational safety consultants.

However, with Lord Young's very public exit as a Government adviser it is now important to ensure the enthusiasm he generated is maintained so that the implementation of the report doesn't lose momentum. It is imperative that the Government continues to drive forward the recommendations in his report and they are undertaken and implemented as suggested. The BSIF will work hard, together with other agencies, to ensure this is achieved.

A focus of the BSIF this year is to continue to try to stamp out the illegal selling of counterfeit PPE that daily endangers lives in the workplace. It is hoped that by continuing to educate end users about the need to purchase PPE from reputable suppliers this can be achieved.

Finally, as the deadline for the BSIF Safety Awards looms ever closer, we look forward to receiving entries and in time celebrating the achievements of this year's finalists at Safety & Health Expo 2011. The Safety Awards provide an ideal platform for a business to spread the word about its products and services and this year we hope to receive a record breaking number of entries.

David Lummis
The BSIF Chief Executive Officer
www.bsif.co.uk