The Latest on Corporate Killing Law

The Government is determined that the proposed corporate manslaughter bill will become law. Not only will this fulfil a long-standing manifesto commitment, but it will complete part of the Warwick agreement between the government and the trade unions.

The government says the delay in bringing the bill forward is due to the complexity of the law involved. A more likely reason is the intense lobbying by parties from victims groups and trade unions to various business organisations and the CBI.

While initially criticised as a weak piece of legislation that lacked teeth to curb the deaths and injuries being caused by rogue employers, the bill is likely to undergo substantial amendment following scrutiny by the select committees on home affairs and work and pensions. Most employers have expressed support for the the bill. The fact that it would not result in charges being brought against individual managers or directors has pleased the CBI, which lobbied hard for this. The remedies are not much different to existing penalties for breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act.

However, the select committee's hard-hitting report recommended substantial changes to increase the scope of legislation, extend the range of penalties and simplify the bill to make it easier to bring changes. The following amendments are likely - The removal of the Senior Manager test proposed in the bill; the government will now look at a simpler test and the reduction of Crown immunity, which is likely to be clarified, but not removed entirely.