| Previous Section | Index | Home Page |
Mr. Meacher: The hon. Gentleman is waffling.
Mr. Jenkin: Businesses are coming to invest in the United Kingdom because they enjoy the flexibility and do not want to get tangled up with European works councils. The effect of the works councils directive as presently set up is to drive investment into this country and make Britain, as Jacques Delors said it would be, a paradise for inward investment. Our European Community partners cannot tolerate that, so now a consultation paper has been put out by the Commission which suggests that compulsory works councils should be set up--not just in Europeanwide businesses, but in domestic businesses--to discuss health and safety matters. That is a clear abuse.
The consultation papers says that, because the works councils would discuss health and safety matters, the Commission invites comments from member states about which treaty powers it should use to promulgate the directive. The obvious implication is that--as the directive is a so-called health and safety matter in the minds of its creators--it should be promulgated under health and safety and subject to a qualified majority vote. In that way, the directive could be imposed on the United Kingdom.
The important point is that our system of light-touch regulation, sensibly balanced with flexible labour markets, results in a better safety record. As my hon. Friend the Minister pointed out, the death rate per 100,000 workers in this country is half the German rate, less than half the Italian rate, a third of the French rate, a quarter of the US rate and one seventh of the Spanish rate. Yet the policy to which the Government were committed when elected is being stripped away by the action of European federal law, and we are denied the opportunity to pursue the policy on which we were elected. That is not only detrimental to the self-respect of and the public respect for a Conservative Government, but detrimental to the interests of this country.
Mr. Ken Eastham (Manchester, Blackley):
The hon. Member for Colchester, North (Mr. Jenkin) thinks that he has made a pretty speech, but it was one of the daftest speeches that I have ever heard in the House. He said that he thought there was too much health and safety regulation in the nuclear industry. One has only to remind him of Chernobyl and of the thousands of people who have died as a result of the lack of health and safety regulation in Chernobyl and in the nuclear industry. The hon. Gentleman said that regulation might cost a few jobs, but the lack of it has cost thousands of lives. I cannot believe the hon. Gentleman's ineptitude. Although he has probably never worked in industry in his life, he thinks there is too much health and safety regulation in the nuclear industry.
Mr. Jenkin:
Will the hon. Gentleman give way?
Mr. Eastham:
I will not give way, because the hon. Gentleman is not worth a reply. He is so silly.
Earlier in the debate, when my hon. Friend the Member for Oldham, West (Mr. Meacher) made his opening remarks, there were two or three Conservative Members here for nuisance value. They were gibing at my hon. Friend and they made a big scene about £18 million pounds for the Health and Safety Commission.
We make no apologies for trying to save lives. The director of the Serious Fraud Office addressed a meeting that I attended a couple of weeks ago. He reported that, last year, serious fraud in big business amounted to £10 billion. Little is being done about that, but Conservative Members showed great passion about spending £18 million on improving health and safety. That puts in perspective how they see the values of modern society.
The Health and Safety Executive used to report annually to the Select Committee on Employment.Of course, that Select Committee is no longer in action, because the Conservatives have seen it off, but I hope that the executive will still report to other Select Committees. The cost to industry of health and safety problems is estimated to be about £10 billion a year. That is a telling figure. It is a loss not only to industry but to the nation.
Another issue that is never mentioned is the massive burden that is placed on insurance companies which have to meet phenomenal costs that could often have been avoided. As my hon. Friend the Member for Oldham, West said, the Health and Safety Executive reported to our Select Committee that it had a serious shortage of doctors and nurses. Over a two-year period, the number had gone down by 50 per cent.--from 100 to 50. That is a serious matter and should worry all hon. Members.
I look through the annual reports year by year and I notice that one of the great problems is in the construction industry. On average, a person used to be killed every three days. Someone may say that it has changed over the past two years and that now only 2.5 people are killed each year, but the accident figures in construction are horrendous and we know some of the reasons for that. Small firms and cowboy organisations cut corners, and we are aware of the price that the industry pays.
Nowadays the buzz word in parliamentary circles is deregulation, but when we use that word we are playing with death. There is no doubt that there will be continual cutting of corners, and it is frightening to think of what
will happen. The results will not be evident immediately, perhaps not for 12 to 18 months, but I have no doubt that they will become apparent. To be fair, large firms are usually responsible and have very good records. The small firms cause the problems, and that should cause the House great concern. Many small firms do not have any written health and safety policy document for employees, and some employers do not even know that such a document is required.
Another problem arises because of the employment of part-time and temporary workers. The more temporary and part-time workers there are, the greater will be the increase in accidents. The CBI recently produced a report called "Flexible Labour Markets". I am bothered when I see in such documents references to the de-skilling of craftsmen's work. Serious consequences will flow from the trend in industry to have workers who are experts at everything. An employee is expected to be a gas fitter, an electrician and a mechanical engineer all in one. Such demands on some people in the work force will, in time, have an effect and will be costly for industry.
Less than two years ago, a document was issued by the West Midlands health and safety action advice centre. It is a catalogue, case after case on page after page, of all kinds of serious injuries in the midlands. Some horrendous cases could have been avoided. The document refers to the lack of meaningful penalties on employers and company directors. They go to the magistrates court and pay £200 to £300. A person may have lost two or three fingers or may never work again, but the employers seem to get away with it. The document is called "The Perfect Crime" and it relates how companies get away with manslaughter in the workplace. I commend the document to Conservative Members. If they have consciences, it might take the smiles off their faces.
The document contains an interesting little article about the United States experience. For example, in 1993 a company owner called Emmet Roe was imprisoned for 20 years following his conviction for the manslaughter of 25 workers. Does anyone think that the courts in this country would take matters as seriously as that? Would cases be used as examples of the importance of health and safety?
I read a recent newspaper story about accidents in hotels. Evidently, part-time, untrained students who are desperate to earn a few bob get work in hotels. Serious burns and all kinds of unacceptable accidents are happening; unfortunately, they are happening to young people. My hon. Friend the Member for Stockport(Ms Coffey) made a telling and worthwhile reference to the installation of gas boilers and gas fires. Often, untrained and unqualified fitters install such equipment, and only three years ago in Manchester there was a fatality from gas poisoning. An immediate inspection of 2,000 heating systems found that half were faulty. They were poisonous and could have caused fatalities.
I do not think that the problem is unique to Manchester. I wonder how many thousands of these lethal pieces of equipment there are throughout the country waiting to strike somebody dead tomorrow, next week or next year. That should cause us concern. That is why we place great importance on health and safety. We are not being flippant when we talk about health and safety; it is a very serious matter.
| Next Section
| Index | Home Page |