Health, Safety & Quality Consultancy
The ‘Fee For Intervention’ (FFI) scheme was implemented by the HSE in October 2012 and has proven unpopular with some inspectors and duty holders. Concerns have been raised on the increase in inspections the HSE has undertaken, as this has risen by 6% in the last year and it is felt that the FFI scheme is an incentive for HSE to boost revenue, following major budget cuts. The HSE have said that the increase in inspections is a natural consequence of targeting high risk industries whom they feel they can have the most effect upon.
An independent panel , set up to investigate the operation of FFI, chaired by Alan Harding, professor of public policy at Liverpool University, have concluded that the HSE has been effective in achieving the overarching policy aim of shifting the cost of health and safety regulation from the public purse to those businesses that break health and safety laws. The report also concluded that fears that FFI would be used to generate revenue have proven to be unfounded, that the scheme has been embedded effectively and applied consistently and that there is no viable alternative that can achieve the same aims.
In our newsletter released in May 2014 you may recall an article reporting the start of the HSE consultation process for the replacement of the Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007. (more…)
Employers can be held criminally liable for the sometimes foolish actions of its employee’s. Even if an employee admits to taking a foolish risk which results in an injury, the onus can still be shifted to the employer, if the HSE can produce evidence of exposure to a foreseeable risk. (more…)
All ladders manufactured and supplied within the United Kingdom and the European Union should be manufactured to specified standards and correctly classified. (more…)