Draft corporate manslaughter Bill published

Home Secretary Charles Clarke announced a draft Bill yesterday to create a new criminal offence of corporate manslaughter - a manifesto commitment dating back to Labour's 2001 General Election campaign.

The crime will apply when someone has been killed because a company's senior management "grossly fails to take reasonable care for the safety of employees or others". However, company directors will not face jail, because the offence would be committed by organisations rather than individuals. The maximum penalty will be an unlimited fine.

The Home Secretary said: "This Government is committed to delivering a criminal justice system that commands the confidence of the public. A fundamental part of this is providing offences that are clear and effective.

"The current laws on corporate manslaughter are neither, as a number of unsuccessful prosecutions over the years stand testament. The Government is committed to reforming this area of the law and today's draft Bill marks an important step in delivering that commitment."

'Complex area of law'

The law currently requires prosecutors to prove a single individual at the very top of a company is personally guilty of manslaughter before the company can be prosecuted. The new offence will allow the courts to look at the implications of working practices set down by the company's managers.

It will also apply to Crown bodies - such as Government departments - as well as the wider public sector and industry, to create a "broad level playing field" between different types of organisations, the minister said. Some Government functions would be exempt, however, including prisons and agencies such as the emergency services during a civil emergency.

Mr Clarke added: "The draft Bill covers an extremely complex area of law and it has taken time to get the proposals right. The draft Bill aims to ensure that the law is effective in bringing organisations to account when they have shown a clear disregard for the law with fatal consequences for members of their workforce or others."

Health and Safety Commission (HSC) chairman Bill Callaghan said: "We are very pleased to see the Home Office proposals and that they reflect HSC thinking, especially with regards to application to the Crown.

"We hope that the publication of the proposals means that there will soon be new and effective legislation in place."

The draft Bill will be up for consultation until June 12 and is expected to lay the foundation for legislation in the next Parliament if Labour is returned to power.

A 'cautious' welcome

The Centre for Corporate Accountability (CCA), longtime campaigners for a change in the law, welcomed the publication of the draft Bill, but immediately raised several concerns.

David Bergman, director of the CCA highlighted how the new offence would only apply to companies and not unincorporated bodies such as associations and partnerships. "In our view the new offence should apply to all employing organisations, as the Government originally agreed in its consultation document in 2000," said Mr Bergman.

He added that the new legal test would require consideration only of the senior managers of an organisation rather than managers at all levels. This was different from the original test set out in the Law Commission recommendation in 1996.

"We are concerned that organisations could delegate their responsibilities down the management chain and thereby allow the organisation to escape manslaughter prosecution," Mr Bergman explained.

He also complained of a failure to consider the criminal liability of company directors. "The CCA is aware that reforms to the offence of corporate manslaughter were always going to focus upon the conduct of the organisation rather than the individual," said Mr Bergman.

"However, the Government has not come up with any alternative mechanisms to deal with the lack of accountability for company directors."

'Some way to go'

CBI deputy director general John Cridland commented: "We understand the political need to reassure the public that everything is being done to make businesses accountable, but the draft Bill has some way to go if it is to be fair to companies.

"The draft bill is right to focus on organisations and not individuals but company structures vary and it needs to be much clearer about who will be regarded as 'senior management' and held responsible.

"The draft is also right to distinguish between grossly negligent companies, who deserve to have the book thrown at them, and genuinely responsible employers who do everything possible to ensure safety. It is vital this fundamental principle is not undermined before any bill becomes law."

He added: "It remains to be seen if the draft Bill deals adequately with Crown immunity. Businesses are keen to see that any rules apply equally to public and private sectors.

"This draft appears to include a get-out clause for a number of public sector bodies even when they are providing similar services to private sector companies who will be covered."

No 'ultimate sanction'

The Institute of Directors (IoD), which has long supported a change in the law in this area, said it broadly welcomed the Government's proposals contained in the draft Bill.

"There are some aspects that we need to seek further progress on, such as unincorporated associations," said the IoD's head of health, environment and transport, Geraint Day. "But we look forward to continued dialogue with the Home Office and parliamentarians in due course,"

He added that the IoD welcomed the fact that no new burdens were to be placed on companies that were already complying with health and safety legislation.

TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said he was pleased that Government had honoured its commitment to publish draft legislation concerning "corporate killing" in this session of Parliament.

"This proposed legislation will help make the workplace safer by providing a new sanction against those organisations who show scant regard for the health and safety of their employees," he said.

"The TUC recognises that the draft Bill covers a number of complex areas and we are pleased that the Government has agreed that the legislation should apply to Crown bodies, but are disappointed that the draft Bill does not threaten individual directors with the ultimate sanction of a jail sentence."

The Home Office said that the draft Bill would be available to download from its website in due course - see link above/right.