Injury lawyers say it's time for boardroom jail terms
Injury lawyers say it's time for boardroom jail terms
Top personal injury lawyers have said a realistic prospect of jail time for top bosses who neglect their safety responsibilities is necessary if the issue is to be taken seriously in Britain's boardrooms. Commenting after a series of reports implicated BP's London-based global board in cost cutting and mis-management that contributed to the Texas City refinery blast that killed 15 (Risks 291), Mick Antoniw of the law firm Thompsons, said: 'The Enron case illustrates that if a senior executive is guilty of fraud then he faces a long term of imprisonment. But if his or her conduct leads to death then there is nothing more than a company fine.' David Urpeth, of the personal injury department of Irwin Mitchell, said: 'Only when you are looking down the barrel of a gun with the prospect of prison at the end of it will this really be taken seriously by directors.' Both Urpeth and Antoniw are frustrated that the Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill currently before parliament fails to deal with the issue of director culpability, instead promising nothing much more than fines on the business. 'While I welcome the Bill, I am disappointed that individual directors will not be held personally liable under the Bill,' said David Urpeth. 'Personal liability would focus the minds of directors and ensure that they placed the health and safety of workers and the public at the very top of their companies' agendas. That way, we might see a reduction in tragic but avoidable accidents.' Commenting on this month's Baker Panel Report, which accused BP of having a 'corporate blindspot' on safety and which said ultimate responsibility for safety at the company lay with the London-based board and chief executive Lord Browne, Kevin Allars, head of the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) chemical industries division, this week told Risks: 'HSE will be considering the contents of the report and its implications for its regulation of BP and indeed the wider major hazard industry - and developing our intervention approach accordingly.' Asked if HSE would be investigating possible evidence of safety offences committed in the company's London boardroom, he responded: 'Enforcement in respect of Texas City is a matter for the US administration.' BP's webpage on the Texas City incident this week carried a message saying 'it will be temporarily unavailable during pending litigation at the request of the US Court.'
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