Regulatory Enforcement and Sanctions Bill

[Mike Buckley]

This Bill links with the topic on fixed penalties.

Looking at the first part of the bill and the consultation document. This part deals with setting up Primary Authorities. As I see it the logic behind this part is to stop different interpretations across different authorities. The idea appears to be that if a company has sites over a number of authorities then it can get agreement through a Primary Authority as to the standards to be applied.

So for example if a fast food company sets up an agreement with several local authorities under a primary authority that certain hand washing facilities for the staff are adequate. Then they can apply this ruling across other authorities. The Guidance note cites an example where a conflict occured with an authority who took the company to court, was ruled against and had to pay substancial costs.

Given the black art state of the guidance it looks like a time bomb to me.

[val]

BERR will set LBRO onto a statutory footing, giving it wide powers of mandatory arbitration, (quite where that sits with the formal appeals process to the Courts if anyone's guess), will provide additional statutory guidance (to the existing statutory guidance where that is unclear), will force the creation of primary authorities that will then force all other enforcing authorities to inspect/audit according to the schedule they determine, (no undue influence from the big boys there then), no need to bother with IRMP Note 4 because "smallshire" has got a few community buses and acts as primary authority for a major supermarket chain and LBRO will determine which enforcing authorities are suitably 'up to speed' to be trusted with the additional (unworkable) sanctions. None of the 'home ministries were properly consulted.

This is a bill written by big businesses to avoid any proactive enforcement activity or audit. Read it very carefully.
Fire and Rescue Authoriities are belated waking up to the issues at heart here.

If you think that BERR and LBRO are ruling the world...you are right. The link below shows they are now starting on H & S

http://www.iosh.co.uk/index.cfm?go=discussion.view&forum=1&thread=32437&page=1