§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment, Transport and the Regions what steps have been taken by his Department in conjunction with the trades unions and Employers' Federation to promote improved health and safety practice at work. [30829]
§ Mr. MeacherI am kept regularly informed by the Health and Safety Commission (HSC), whose members include representatives of both employees and employers organisations, of measures and action taken to promote improved health and safety practice in the workplace. Much of HSC's work is done in consultation with their industry advisory committees which encourage the joint participation of all representative organisations in the improvement of health and safety at work and draw on the expertise and advice available on both sides of industry. These committees give the problems of particular industries close and more detailed attention.
I have recently allocated to the HSC/E an extra £4.5 million and I look forward to receiving their Plan of Work for 1998/99 which sets out detailed proposals of how resources will be used to achieve their aims and key priorities for the coming year. One of the HSC's key priorities will be to improve health and safety at work by promoting the full participation of key intermediaries and principal stakeholders, namely employers, employees and their representatives.