The following has been supplied by the TUC:
A new system of regulation which could cap the number of workplace inspections of small businesses has been criticised by the TUC as dangerous and unwanted. Commenting on an announcement by deputy prime minister Nick Clegg this week that the government is set to cap workplace inspections for small companies to just two a year to cut back on 'red tape', TUC general secretary Brendan Barber said: 'This is another example of the government putting the right to make a fast buck before our health and safety and our lives - although at least the deputy prime minister acknowledges the dangers of the 'scrap it all' line peddled by the Tory diehards.' He added: 'Regulation is there to protect us all from businesses that rip us off, trash our environment, and risk our health - or even our lives. However, it is only of use if it is enforced. Enforcement should not be seen as a burden on business, but instead a way of ensuring that good businesses are not undercut by cowboys who disregard the law and cut corners, whether it is on paying VAT or not polluting our rivers. Cuts in enforcement will put even more of us at risk of damaged health or injury or death in our workplaces.' He added that the government was responding to the shrill calls of business lobby groups who were not representing the real concerns of small firms. 'A brand new survey of small and medium-sized enterprises published by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), shows that employment law and health and safety regulation do not even feature in their list of concerns,' he said. 'It would appear that employer organisations are pursuing a fanatical right wing agenda that does not actually reflect the concerns of their members.'
