UK: Elf 'n' Safe Tea review

[John Ashworth]

Tory Peer Bids To Cut Health And Safety Laws

10:29am UK, Monday June 14, 2010
David Williams, Sky News Online

The man in charge of a Government review into health and safety laws has told Sky News: "We cannot go through life saying there are no risks."

Former Cabinet minister Lord Young blamed "petty rules and the nanny state" for helping to instill a compensation culture in Britain.

The Tory peer has been tasked by the Prime Minister to head a commission to re-evaluate the extent of health and safety legislation.

"We are living in a world where people cannot change a light bulb without taking a qualification," he told Eamonn Holmes on Sky News Sunrise.

"We have got to a stage where teachers are reluctant to take pupils on a day trip because of the forms they have got to fill in.

"We cannot go through life saying there are no risks."

Lord Young, who served as trade and industry secretary under Margaret Thatcher, is expected to report to Downing Street in the summer.

He pledged to make "reasonable, practical steps" during his review, adding that "common sense will prevail".

The peer will investigate concerns over the "application and perception" of health and safety laws, along with the "rise of the compensation culture over the last decade".

Earlier, David Cameron said: "I'm very pleased that Lord Young has agreed to lead this important review.

"The rise of the compensation culture over the last 10 years is a real concern, as is the way health and safety rules are sometimes applied.

"We need a sensible new approach that makes clear these laws are intended to protect people, not overwhelm businesses with red tape. I look forward to receiving Lord Young's recommendations on how we can best achieve that."