WOBO members and fellow professionals must keep up to speed with developments and actions taken in relation to health and safety.

Legal Lens: Openreach fined £1.34m following death of engineer in the River Aber

Alun Owen died aged 32 in October 2020. He was working for Openreach Limited (“Openreach“) on a customer’s telephone line in the village of Abergwyngregyn, near Bangor. In the days before, the River Aber had burst its banks and the village had been flooded . The water was still much higher and faster-flowing than usual.

The faulty telephone line in ran across the River Aber. Openreach engineers had been trying to repair the line over a period of two months, working both near and in the river.

On 6 October 2020, whilst called out to an issue with the faulty line, Mr Owen waded into the water at a point where it was only up to his calves, in an attempt to throw a new line across the river to the other riverbank.

He made his way across to an island in the middle of the river, where he taped a hammer to the new telephone cable and to throw it across to the other side. Whilst attempting to cross the remaining section of river, Mr Owen slipped in deeper water and was swept away. Tragically, Mr Owen drowned and his body was found that evening about 270 metres downstream from where he had first entered the water.

Government commits to Martyn’s Law

Legislation around anti-terrorism legislation, housing reform and workers rights included in Labour’s forthcoming plans.

In the traditional state opening of Parliament today (17 July), King Charles delivered his speech to the House of Lords’ outlining Labour’s legislative programme  including the implementation of Martyn’s Law.

The Martyn’s Law Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Bill means venues and local authorities n0w have a legal duty to produce preventative plans against terror attacks.

It ends a tireless campaign spearheaded by Figen Murray, whose son Martyn Hett was killed by a terrorist bomb at the Manchester Arena while attending a concert in May 2017. Ms Murray commented on the announcement saying it is a “huge relief”.

Originally supported by the previous Government, the pandemic and changes in the Tory’s leadership, held up its progress despite the legislation sitting in draft form.

In 2019, a consultation on a Bill for the Law closed, and, until today had not moved forward. However, today’s announcement means the regulation is implemented in the coming months.

Lithium-ion batteries and the risks they pose to construction sites

Hannah Eales, Partner and Kathryn Sheridan,  Senior Associate, at law firm Kingsley Napley, provide an overview of what risks to look out for with lithium-ion batteries – and the necessary compliance. 

It would be difficult not to have heard about the rapid rise of lithium-ion battery fires in recent times. These rechargeable batteries – used to charge up our smart phones, laptops, e-scooters, e-bikes and various other electrical devices- have been thrown into the spotlight due to the spate of fires caused by these batteries when they become damaged, over-heated or begin to fail.

The issue is a global one with major news reports concerning these battery fires being reported in Australia, South Korea, the United States, as well as at home.

Qualification aims to prove Principal Contractor competence

A new certification scheme from the CIOB gives Principal Contractors the opportunity to prove competence.

Following the tragedy at Grenfell Tower in June 2017 and other major building fire incidents, a new Building Safety Regulator (BSR) was established in England to oversee the safe design, construction and occupation of higher-risk buildings (HRBs).

While the establishment of the BSR in England is intended to oversee a new, more stringent regime for HRBs, it also aims to drive improvements in building safety and performance in all buildings. As part of the regulatory transformation there is a requirement for two safety-critical roles, namely the Principal Designer and Principal Contractor, both with building safety responsibilities.

Show targeting ‘global leaders of people and property’ launches registration

Anticipate London, a show that converges the fire, safety, security and facilities professions has opened for registration.

The event, which takes place at the beginning of December aims to focus on risk management, technology and leadership, speaks to all four disciplines and is represented across four legacy brands.

As well as the Safety and Health Expo, the blanket event being held at London Excel, will incorporate FIREX, the Facilities Show and IFSEC, and run from 2 to 4 December.

The event’s organisers, Informa, say the event is “designed for global leaders of people and property”, and have curated content topics covering AI, geopolitical risks and climate change to meet the challenges faced by this demographic.

Recycling company fined £3m after one man died and another seriously injured

A recycling company has been fined after a man died and another was seriously injured while decommissioning a North Sea gas rig.

Stephen Picken, 62, and Mark Kumar were working for Veolia ES (UK) Limited at an onshore facility in Great Yarmouth.

Both men were working as demolition operatives also known as “Top Men”, undertaking the decommissioning and dismantlement of offshore structures.

On 17 October 2019, the two workers were removing an overhanging piece of metal pipework (known as a skirt pile), weighing in excess of 27 tonnes, from a jacket (a structure placed in the sea, designed to support oil and gas rig platforms), when it gave way. The pile struck the mobile elevating work platform (MEWP) containing the men, throwing them to the ground about 12 metres below.