May: Panorama: A missed opportunity
May 30th 2009 There have been mixed reactions to the BBC Panorama programme May Contain Nuts, broadcast on 20 April which saw Daily Mail journalist Quentin Letts ask whether Britain's health and safety culture has spiralled out of control. Among the issues squeezed into the half an hour programme were: an examination of some well-publicised health and safety myths, an outline of the Noise at Work Regulations, a trial of a ladder safety course, a reflection on the rise of the compensation culture, a look at the poor safety records on construction sites and an interview with Judith Hackitt.
Frustratingly none of the issues were explored in any real detail – or with that much accuracy. While congratulating the programme for highlighting the importance of health and safety regulation, Chair of Professional Union Prospect’s HSE branch, Neil Hope-Collins pointed out its “exaggeration and misinterpretation of selected policies, mirrored the very approach the programme aspired to tackle.”
It begs the question, what did Quentin Letts set out to achieve? To point the finger at the HSE and the health and safety profession in general? Probably. But this turned out to be a harder case than he had perhaps imagined. Judith Hackitt was willing to admit some HSE guidance may have led to local councils deciding to excessively “topple test” gravestones, but that was about it.
So, with this case unproven what was there left for Letts to say? Apparently lots, but Letts then whizzed through: the rise of the ambulance chasing lawyer, the shortage of resources for the HSE and the poor health and safety record of the construction industry, while failing to really get his teeth into any of them.
As the programme recognised, the UK has one of the best health and safety records in the world, but it has reached a plateau in recent years. It is widely thought that the key to improvement will be to take people with it. The industry is hungry for debate and this seemed a prime opportunity in which to raise some important issues and engage the wider public, yet sadly it was one that was wasted.
Georgina Bisby
Editor
Health & Safety Matters
gbisby@western-bp.co.uk More articles from HSM News Desk: | 
