Every so often there is a spasm of "red tape " and scrap health and safety laws. One of our respected ACEVO members is Tom Mullarkey, CEO off RoSPA , one of the worlds leading safety organisations.
He emails me recently to say that not one single person has been killed in the construction of the Olympic sites, despite the fact these are big construction projects. So our dreaded health and safety regulations not only serve a very sensible purpose but they save lives!
The Beijing figure on deaths during their Olympic building is unknown. There are c50 million migrant construction workers in China alone – often seen as the least cared-about group. In 2005, 127,000 workers are estimated to have lost their lives at work, about 40-50 times the rate of death in the UK. I would say this was likely to be a conservative figure.
It is probable that the figure for the Olympics would be measured in thousands, given a six year build. The injury rates would be typically 30times to 50times the death rate. But these are just rough estimates as there is no comprehensive reporting.
In Athens, the toll was officially 14 for the Olympic sites but unions claimed that many more had died. At least 40 are believed to have died overall including the infrastructure projects.
So scrapping red tape may please readers of the Daily mail but we have regulations for a purpose; saving lives and preventing accidents.
And talking of the Daily Mail I see that my friend Quentin Letts , their amusing columnist has been writing about me again. I now feature regularly. What an honour. He must love my blog...I'm described as a " third sector smoozer"..... " What a shiny button he is" he exclaims! Keep it up Quentin!
1 comment:
I even heard a lot about that people faced many injuries during Olympic sites. Red tape sounds great that to peel it in every way , So that become safe during any kind of situation.
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