HC Deb 27 March 1979 vol 965 cc110-1W
Mr. George Rodgers

asked the Secretary of State for Employment whether he has received the Equal Opportunities Commission's report on its review of discriminatory provisions in health and safety legislation; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. John Grant

My right hon. Friend has now received the Commission's report and I have arranged for copies to be placed in the library. His views on the report are set out in a foreword to the document which reads as followsThe Equal Opportunities Commission's report, published at my request, provides a sound basis for considering what should be done to eliminate, where appropriate, different treatment of men and women in our protective legislation. I am grateful for the effort the Equal Opportunities Commission and the Health and Safety Commission have given to producing this comprehensive and detailed assessment of the present law and its effects, and for the recommendations the Equal Opportunities Commission has made. I hope that the recommendations in the report can be quickly followed up, although I appreciate that while some are not generally controversial others have considerable implications which all concerned will wish to weigh carefully. As the report itself makes clear, the review has been concerned mainly with requirements which are found in legislation now associated with the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974. It is the Health and Safety Commission which has the duty of proposing changes in these statutory requirements. Its proposals for regulations are published in a consultative document to enable all those concerned to put forward comments before proposals are made to Ministers. The Health and Safety Commission is already engaged in consultation on a number of matters which are the subject of recommendations in the report, and I am asking it to take into account the recommendations in the report in its current and future work. It would therefore be of considerable assistance if those who have comments on the recommendations or the ideas put forward in the report could send them to the Health and Safety Commission as well as to the Equal Opportunities Commission. The EOC when reporting on progress generally in the removal of discrimination will be indicating where things stand in the area of protective legislation.