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Health and Safety should be an important General Election issue.

Workplace accidents are still too common, so Health and Safety should be an important General Election issue.

Brexit, budgets and ‘strong and stable leadership’ may be dominating the election headlines, but as specialists in claims for workplace accidents, the front bench at Swindon Accident Solicitors have at least one eye on what the different parties have to say about health and safety issues.

As campaigning for the June 8th election got underway, Karen Bufton, president of the British Occupational Hygiene Society, called on all political parties to put UK workers’ health protection at the heart of their manifestos and to retain a well-funded Health and Safety Executive (HSE). It is a call Swindon Accident Solicitors support wholeheartedly.

“Snap election campaigns tend to focus on the most pressing issues of the day,” says Ms Bufton, “but worker health protection is absolutely integral to the vitality of the UK’s economy. We therefore urge all the political parties to seize the opportunities for change offered by this general election, and to prioritise the health of British workers.”

During the Brexit campaign plenty of voices bemoaned the excessive red tape that encumbers British business, but in reality the UK’s health and safety system is not only fit for purpose, it serves as a model of control and efficiency emulated by countries around the world. The UK’s Olympic Park was a prime example. Analysis indicated that implementing worker health protection measures far outweighed the costs involved; the net benefits were significant, with a £7 saving for every £1 invested.

Rather than excessive regulation, the real burden on the UK economy is the fallout from 1.3 million people suffering work-related illnesses every year. A staggering thirty million working days were lost in 2016 due to work-related illness and workplace accidents. Saddest of all, 144 UK workers were killed in their place of work. That is a sobering figure for any politician.

As legal specialists dedicated to helping workers claim compensation for accidents at work, Swindon Accident Solicitors hopes to see positive campaign messages about the benefits of effective health and safety legislation. So regardless of the colours they are sporting, when a candidate knocks on your door to solicit your vote, ask them what their party will do to support health and safety, reduce the toll of workplace injuries, and safeguard the rights of workers who are entitled to claim compensation after suffering an accident at work.

Swindon Accident Solicitors offer a FREE initial consultation that will review your workplace accident and establish if you have a justifiable claim. Please contact us today on 01793 425595 to arrange an appointment with one of our friendly lawyers.