Lord Young of Graffham, the Prime Minister's special advisor on both health and safety and enterprise, has resigned after claiming most voters had 'never had it so good'. In an interview with the Daily Telegraph, Lord Young dismissed the 100,000 job cuts expected each year in the public sector as being 'within the margin of error' in the context of a 30 million-strong workforce and said that complaints about spending cuts came from 'people who think they have a right for the state to support them'.
The former trade and industry secretary in Margaret Thatcher's government also said people would look back on the recession and 'wonder what all the fuss was about'. Tony Woodley, Unite's joint general secretary, said: 'Lord Young has let the mask slip. His Thatcherite claptrap shows this country has passed into the hands of an out-of-touch elite.' Lord Young had published a report last month which was widely criticised by the TUC and trade unions when it was published TUC general secretary Brendan Barber had said: 'The review's recommendations are predictable but a grave disappointment all the same. The report contains not a single proposal that will reduce the high levels of workplace death, injuries and illness. In addition concern was expressed over some recommendations including proposed changes to reporting regulations. The report also called for ministers to 'go back to the European Commission and negotiate a reduction of burdens for low hazard environments'.
Following Lord Young resignation, Hugh Robertson, Head of Health and Safety at the TUC warned. 'Lord Young may be gone but his spectre continues to loom over us. His report is still government policy and the government has already started work on reducing the way that offices, shops, schools and SMEs have to deal with health and safety. We should never forget that this report was written by a man who said about health and safety 'People occasionally get killed, it's unfortunate but it's part of life.' The fact that the government asked a man like this to be a special adviser on health and safety speaks volumes in itself.'
