Wednesday, 21 December 2011

BAN ON SMOKING IN CARS


The British Medical Association is calling for the ban on smoking in public places to be extended across the UK to protect people from second-hand smoke in cars after reviewing evidence of the dangers.

It has highlighted research results which demonstrate the toxins levels in a car can be up to 23 times higher than in a smoky bar.

Nowhere in the UK has implemented this extended ban although ministers in Northern Ireland are planning to launch a consultation on the issue and Wales has begun a public awareness campaign to highlight the dangers of smoking in cars with a plan to introduce a ban if the campaign does not succeed. Neither England or Scotland are currently considering introducing legislation at the moment.

Reclaiming health and safety
Lord Löfstedt’s report ‘Reclaiming health and safety for all - An independent review of health and safety legislation’, was published on 28 November. His review of the fitness of the 17 acts and 200 regulations as part of the Department for Work and Pensions document, Good Health and Safety, Good for Everyone concludes the UK’s health and safety law framework is broadly sound but he says the problem “lies less with the regulations themselves and more with the way they are interpreted and applied”.

A welcome recommendation is that that the HSE should provide more guidance for business on what constitutes reasonably practicable safety and the report makes further recommendations relating to four regulations relating to tower cranes and celluloid cinema.

As a result the HSE will begin work to amend the 53 Approved Codes of Practice (ACoPS) to reduce their complexity and will highlight the main changes necessary by June 2012.

The wider recommendation on consolidation of safety law is for the HSE to commission research by January 2012 to help decide if the core set of health and safety regulations could be consolidated in such a way that would provide clarity and savings for businesses. An agreed new ‘Challenge Panel’ will be set up for businesses wishing to challenge enforcement decisions they believe are not proportionate.

Work at Height Regulations
The review also recommends reviews of Work at Height Regulations in relation to the current inclusion of stepladders and permanent workplaces and seeks clarity in the requirement to organise portable appliance testing for electrical equipment in the workplace under the Electricity at Work Regulations. There are further proposals to remove the requirement for self-employed persons in low-risk occupations whose activities pose no risk to others to comply with health and safety legislation.

Judith Hackitt, HSE chair, has stated “Poor regulation - that which adds unnecessary bureaucracy with no real benefits - drives out confidence in good regulation. We welcome these reforms because they are good for workers and employers but also for the significant contribution they will make to restoring the rightful reputation of real health and safety.”

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