What do you think about the health and safety regime?
The Better Regulation Executive (BRE) in the Government’s Business, Enterprise and Regulatory Reform department (BERR) wants to hear from you.
You have until 31 January 2008 to respond.
Your responses will be fed into a project that is looking for ways to make sure health and safety requirements are sensible and ensure that everyone can enjoy safer and healthier working lives.
HSE and LACORS have been working with BRE to shape the project, providing initial evidence about local authorities' role in the regime and influencing the way the project team have framed questions. The project is, in particular, taking the perspective of lower risk businesses including many small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).
The review is about how the system works as a whole. BRE is looking at the roles of employers, employees and their representatives, insurers, customers, consultants, trade bodies, lawyers and GPs as well as HSE and local authorities.
BRE wants to hear your views and experience of the regime
For example:
- What do you think are the main things that influence management of health and safety by business? Should government (central or local) do anything more to make sure businesses get it right?
- In general, are people at work adequately protected by the current regime?
Would you advocate any changes to health and safety requirements to improve accident and illness outcomes or make burdens on businesses more proportionate? What are they? Why? - What do you think are the strengths and weaknesses in the current role for local authorities, HSE and their Partnership in the regime?
- Have you been involved in or made use of any recent initiatives that you think are especially helpful, eg the example risk assessments now on the web for low risk businesses?
BRE is planning to hold a number of events around the country in December and January to seek local authority views. If you have comments prompted by the above questions, any other thoughts or would like to be invited to an event near you please contact:
Max Walker, H&S Team
Better Regulation Executive
Tel: (0)20 7215 6897
Email: max.walker@berr.gsi.gov.uk
Information about the review, the regime, more detailed questions and details of the project's confidentiality policy are on the web, just follow http://bre.berr.gov.uk/regulation/.
Local Authorities Science and Technology Initiative:
CALL FOR FURTHER APPLICATIONS
The Local Authorities’ Science and Technology Initiative runs until March 2009.
At its meeting in November, the Governance Panel noted that a small amount of money is still available to support further planned projects. This was after the Panel had reviewed:
- anticipated spending against the £5m that HSC allocated to this work, and
- anticipated content of its ‘Science Plan’ that is being developed for 2008/09.
Consequently, Local Authorities are invited to consider whether there are any further proposals for planned projects that they would wish to make. In particular, the Panel noted that, as it is more likely that HSL will have capacity in the health and engineering topic areas, then applications would be particularly welcome in these areas. The Panel also recognised that there is only limited funding still available and it may be necessary to prioritise proposals and that it might not be possible to support all those received. The Panel will make its final decisions on which projects to support before mid 2008. Consequently, proposals for any further planned projects must be received before 30 April 2008.
Should there be work that you feel could be progressed under this Initiative please contact either:
Mark White, HSL
Tel: 01298 218816
Email: mark.white@hsl.gov.uk
Graham Bell, HSE
Tel: 0151 951 9705
Email: graham.bell@hse.gsi.gov.uk
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