HL Deb 02 February 1999 vol 596 cc194-5WA
Lord Monkswell

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they will publish the number of deaths caused as a result of accidents on British building sites in each of the last five years, together with a table showing the cause of death. [HL698]

Lord Whitty

The number of fatal injuries in the construction industry and the kind of accident reported to the Health and Safety Executive and local authorities is set out in the table below.

Kind of Accident 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 11997–98
Fall from a height:
Up to and including 2 metres 1 1 2 3 1
Over 2 metres 47 42 29 46 39
Height not stated 1 0 0 1 5
Total falls from a height 49 43 31 50 45
Trapped by something collapsing or overturning 19 12 20 6 4
Drowning or asphyxiation 0 2 1 2 0
Exposure to or contact with harmful substance 1 0 1 0 0
Exposure to fire 0 0 0 0 0
Exposure to an explosion 0 4 1 1 0
Contact with electricity or an electrical discharge 7 0 5 6 5
Injured by an animal 0 0 0 0 0
Injuries caused by assault or violence N/R N/R N/R 0 0
Other kind of accident 0 0 1 1 1
Injuries not classified by kind 0 0 0 2 1
Total 94 86 82 93 80

N/R = Not reportable under RIDDOR 85.

1 Provisional.

The figures for 1996–97 and 1997–98 are published in the Health and Safety Commission's publication Health and Safety Statistics 1997–98, a copy of which is in the Library of the House of Lords.