Corporate manslaughter will become a new criminal offence if the Bill, announced yesterday by Home Secretary Charles Clarke becomes law.
If senior management ‘grossly fail to take reasonable care for the safety of employees or others’ they will face prosecution.
According to the government, this tackles the key problem with the current law: the need to show that a single individual at the very top of a company is personally guilty of manslaughter before the company can be prosecuted.
Under the draft Bill, managers will not face jail but will be given an unlimited fine. Corporate manslaughter will be deemed an offence ‘committed by organisations rather than individuals.’
Of the Bill, the Home Secretary said:
“The draft Bill covers an extremely complex area of law and it has taken time to get the proposals right. The draft Bill aims to ensure that the law is effective in bringing organisations to account when they have shown a clear disregard for the law with fatal consequences for members of their workforce or others.”
The Health and Safety Commission declared their ‘strong support’ for the Bill and said it properly reflects society’s condemnation for workplace deaths caused by ‘extreme disregard for health and safety.’
Bosses’ group the CBI were, however, less enthusiastic.
Deputy Director John Cridland said: “The draft bill is right to focus on organisations and not individuals but company structures vary and it needs to be much clearer about who will be regarded as ‘senior management’ and held responsible.
“The draft is also right to distinguish between grossly negligent companies, who deserve to have the book thrown at them, and genuinely responsible employers who do everything possible to ensure safety. It is vital this fundamental principle is not undermined before any bill becomes law.”
Referring to the exemptions that apply to certain public and Government functions who will fall outside the scope of the Bill, Cridland said:
“It remains to be seen if the draft bill deals adequately with Crown immunity.
“Businesses are keen to see that any rules apply equally to public and private sectors. This draft appears to include a get-out clause for a number of public sector bodies even when they are providing similar services to private sector companies who will be covered.”
