Menu

Health and Safety News

Occupational health and safety news and guidance

Speech to Devonport Dockyard

Judith Hackitt CBE, Chair of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) delivered a speech on the progress of health and safety whilst visiting Devonport Dockyard recently.

She pointed out that "Britain has a good record. We're a leader in health and safety...other countries look to us for leadership and many seek to adopt our approach" but made it clear that "every fatality is a tragedy - someone who is lost forever to family, friends and colleagues. And we still have over 100,000 employees suffering serious injuries every year as well as several thousands of people dying prematurely from work-related diseases."

This has led the Board of HSE to launch the new strategy for health and safety, Hackitt explained, stressing that "it is very much a strategy for everyone who is part of the system in Great Britain - and we want it to be owned and delivered by all."

Hackitt went on to explain how to achieve excellence in health and safety; focusing on the real priorities; worker involvement and ; the leadership principles of taking personal responsibility for health and safety and proportionality, pointing out that "health and safety management is not about elimination of all risk - it is about doing what is 'reasonably practicable' to manage foreseeable risk and then getting on with the task."

The full transcript of the speech.

Go Back

Comment