§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many employees were killed in industrial accidents during the first six months of 1977, and in the same months during each of the past five years for which records are available.
§ Mr. John Grant:The Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission informs me that the numbers of fatal accidents notified to the Commission and its Agencies during the first six months of 1977 and during the same months for each of the preceding five years were:
1972 … … … … 340 1973 … … … … 372 1974 … … … … 331 1975 … … … … 272 1976 … … … … 236 1977 … … … … 264 Figures for 1977 are still provisional and exclude a small number of fatalities notified under the Offices Shops and Railway Premises Act 1963 for the second quarter of 1977, data for which has not yet been analysed.
§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many industrial accidents were reported during the first six months of 1977, and in the same months during each of the past five years for which records are available.
§ Mr. John Grant:The Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission informs me that not all of the inspectorates and agencies of the Commission have information available for periods of less than a calendar year. Where this is the case, and accurate figures could be obtained only at disproportionate cost, an estimate of one half of the total number of accidents notified in the respective year has been included in the table below.
Total reported accidents 1972 … 178,576 1973 … 187,708 1974 … 169,150 1975 … 166.040 1976 … 159,657 1977 (provisional) … 161,314
§ Mr. Greville Jannerasked the Secretary of State for Employment to what extent he estimates that the implementation of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 has led to a reduction in indus- 884W trial accidents; and whether he will make a statement.
§ Mr. John Grant:The Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission advises me that it is too early to evaluate the effect of the Health and Safety at Work Act on accidents.
Although the fact that there has been a reduction in accidents—particularly fatal ones—over the period 1974–76 is to be welcomed, statistics over a three year period are insufficient to establish a trend.