Osborne Budget Speech Confirms Scrapping Of Health And Safety Legislation

George Osborne took the opportunity of his budget speech last week to confirm the government intends to “scrap or improve 84% of health and safety legislation” despite the fact that the governments own adviser Professor Ragnor Löfstedt stated, in his revue of health and safety legislation, that the was no need for a reduction of existing health and safety legislation.

Coming just a few days after the IOSH 2012 conference in which Professor Ragnar Löfstedt’s criticised the government for the misuse of his review, and for claiming he said that 50% of health and safety regulation needs consolidating; the government continues its attack on both health and safety legislation and employment rights.

The deregulation of health and safety got top billing in chancellor George Osborne's 21 March announcement of measures for "supply-side reform of the economy." The budget statement said:

“The government will scrap or improve 84 per cent of health and safety regulation” and added other measures would include the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) urging the European Commission to introduce 'micro-exemptions or lighter touch EU health and safety regulation' for small and medium-sized firms, "based on ideas raised during the Red Tape Challenge."

The statement also referred to action with the insurance industry “in order to tackle the compensation culture”, a phenomenon the government itself has determined does not exist.

On page 45 of The 2012 Budget document available from the HM Treasury website, Osborne re-iterates his attack on workers rights with regard to workplace health and safety:

Reducing burdens on business

1.237 To reduce the costs and barriers that regulation and administrative burdens impose on businesses, the Government:

“will scrap or improve 84 per cent of health and safety regulation, including legislating in 2012 so that ‘strict liability’ provisions in health and safety law will no longer hold employers to be in breach of their duties when they have done everything that is reasonably practicable and foreseeable to protect their employees;”

It goes on further:

“will launch sector-based reviews of regulation from April 2012 to ensure regulation is enforced at the lowest possible cost to business, starting with chemicals manufacturing, volunteer events and small businesses in food manufacturing; and has examined around 1,500 regulations through the Red Tape Challenge, over half of which will be scrapped or improved.”

This does not auger well for the safety of the environment and of consumers, not to mention the risk to the food chain as regulations are removed which currently offer some form of protection.

Further attacks on workers rights are detailed with regard to employment rights and making the UK the ‘most flexible workforce in Europe’:

Supporting employment

1.242 To reduce barriers to businesses taking on new staff the Government: has accepted the Low Pay Commission’s recommendation for below inflation increases to the National Minimum Wage; has announced significant deregulation of employment law, including increasing the unfair dismissal qualifying period from one to two years from 6 April 2012 and publishing a call for evidence on dismissal processes on 15 March 2012, which includes consideration of introducing compensated no fault dismissal for micro businesses; has completed a consultation on proposals to introduce fees for employment tribunals, which closed on 6 March 2012, and is now considering the responses.

The Government intends to publish the response to the consultation before summer recess 2012; and has provided evidence to the Pay Review Bodies on the economic case for reforming public sector pay to better reflect local labour markets, following the announcement at Autumn Statement 2011.

The Review Bodies are due to report from July 2012. In addition, a number of civil service departments that entered the pay freeze in advance of other workforces will exit it from April 2012. These departments will be able to introduce more local, market-facing pay reform from this year, following further work with the Cabinet Office to develop proposals for local pay, as set out in the pay guidance issued by the Treasury.

In addition, HM Treasury will conduct an internal review to examine the role of employee ownership in supporting growth and examine options to remove barriers, including tax barriers, to its wider take-up. The review will also consider the findings of the work on employee ownership being led by the Minister for Employment Relations, Consumer and Postal Affairs, due to report in summer 2012, and will conclude ahead of Autumn Statement 2012.”

A statement from TUC noted:

“While this is a regurgitated mish-mash of previously announced moves, presented as a package in this way it highlights the pro-business, anti-worker agenda of this government. Not one of these proposals will do anything to protect the workforce from the epidemic of occupational disease that we have.

Instead it will simply give the message to employers that health and safety is a burden and there is little need for them to give it any priority as there is no chance of them ever being investigated or prosecuted unless they report an injury.

It added the Budget focus on safety deregulation “shows very clearly exactly why the TUC is organising a Day of Action on 28 April to defend health and safety.”

In a press release issued on the day of the budget announcement, TUC General Secretary Brendan Barber commented on the wider financial implications of the budget:

"We needed a Budget that looked to the future and made jobs - particularly for young people - the national priority.

Instead we have got a Budget for the rich by the rich. One minute the Chancellor said he found tax avoidance morally repugnant, the next he rewarded it by cutting income tax for the richest one per cent - with precious little relief for hard-pressed families on ordinary incomes.

Treasury figures show that those on low and middle incomes will do worse than those higher up the income scale. This looks like a Budget made to keep the Coalition together rather than one made for the good of the country.'

Business lobby group CBI said the deregulatory proposals did not go far enough.

'There needs to be much greater urgency to the government's deregulatory agenda,' said CBI director-general John Cridland. TUC general secretary Brendan Barber described the chancellor's announcement as 'a Budget for the rich by the rich.'

Simon Walker, director general of the Institute of Directors, echoed Cridland's comments that the Budget did not go far enough on business regulation.

"The Chancellor has not done enough to free business from the burdens and barriers that are holding economic growth back. Businesses dearly want the opportunity to invest, create and build, but George Osborne must go much further if he wants to fire up the engines of the economy."

However, Mike Emmott, employee relations policy adviser at the CIPD, argued that getting rid of employment regulation is not the way to boost growth.

"If the Government is serious about increasing economic growth, it will look to support employers' efforts to build an engaged workforce," he said. "Taking away employment rights is not the answer and there is no evidence to support such a claim.

If the Government wants high performing workplaces, so as to increase productivity and support economic growth, it needs to accept that they cannot be built on the back of unfair treatment of employees. Fairness, trust and respect are the basis for successful employment relationships, not dumbing down management practice to the level of the least competent."

See also: Prof Löfstedt Criticises Cameron On Health And Safety

Source: TUC Risks / HM Treasury / Personnel Today

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