Business Leaders today welcomed the introduction of the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill

21 July 2006

The Institute of Directors (IoD) has supported the principles behind this Bill since 2000.

The IoD in particular welcomed:

• The removal of Crown immunity for the majority of public bodies and their functions. We would have hoped that the government could have narrowed the range of exemptions and hope that in the Bill’s passage through Parliament this will be done.

• The decision to make the legislation applicable throughout the UK because this will assist many organisations in developing a consistent approach.

The IoD also believes that a way should be found to include unincorporated bodies within the scope of the law since otherwise there would be inequality merely because of organisational structure.

The IoD has long advocated the highest standards of health and safety and is currently working with the Health and Safety Executive to produce revised guidance to directors on their responsibilities for health and safety performance.

Head of Health and Safety policy at the IoD, Geraint Day said:

“We are pleased that the government has resisted attempts to make individuals liable for corporate failures. This would have acted against encouraging appropriate corporate cultures and our worry would be that it could create scapegoats.”