CONTENTS

politics first | Leaders
Building a Britain that works
better for everyone
ADVERTORIAL
HEALTH AND WORK IN A CHANGING WORLD
Sir Patrick McLoughlin MP, Chairman of the Conservative Party
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I have a deep appreciation for how giving everyone the chance
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to succeed – no matter their background, gender, skin colour,
sexuality, or post code – has the potential to help transform lives
As we begin our negotiations to leave the EU
and forge a new role for ourselves in the world, our
nation will inevitably face difficult and complex
decisions. But the Government is committed to
making the most of the opportunities that our
departure from the EU presents.
We will work hard to get the best deal for
Britain. As we conduct our negotiations, it
must be a priority to regain more control of the
numbers of people who come here from Europe
– but also to allow British companies to trade
with the single market in goods and services.
But as unionists, the Conservative Party
understands that we need to bring stability to our
country, too. We cannot be exclusively defined
by our withdrawal from the EU. Instead, we must
move forward and show the people of Scotland,
Wales, Northern Ireland and England, alike, that
our governments are working together, to make
ours a country that works for everyone – not just
the privileged few.
Over the last six years, the Conservatives
have stabilised the economy, reduced the
budget deficit, helped more people into work
than ever before, and taken people on the lowest
wages out of income tax altogether.
We have succeeded not only in turning
the economy around, but also in focusing
our efforts on a modern, compassionate
Conservative agenda to back working families
and help more people from dependency
to self-sufficiency. We have made good
progress, but there is more still to do. That
is why we are committed to going further
to help ordinary families who are just about
managing.
Fatalities at work, such a common – and
awful – fact of working life in the past,
have now, through a combination of
state intervention and change of work,
been massively reduced. When it comes
to work-related risks, it is commonplace
to say that the UK’s health and safety
framework is robust, credible and largely
effective. Now, with profound changes to
how we work, there is a question whether
our framework or the topics we focus on
are the right ones for the future, particular
on how work impacts on people’s health,
or health on work.
Costs associated with ill-health – whether
from reduced economic productivity or
increased public spending – is likely to
increase in the coming years. In the UK
alone, the state spends over £12bn a year
on health-related benefits and foregone
taxes, and employers face a £9bn bill.
This is at a time when the Health and
Safety Executive and Local Authorities
have less and less resources to spend on
enforcement and an increasingly ageing
workforce who can be more vulnerable
to injury and ill-health.
Well-recognised trends in work and
life – how mobile technology is blurring
the boundaries between life and work,
insecure work or people living more
isolated lives - do seem to be turning
up the pressure. In its Measuring
National Well-being report, the ONS
estimates 18.5 million people are
experiencing anxiety in the UK. And work
is a significant contributor to this state
of affairs. The Clock Off survey tells a
similar story, this time around the public
or third sector where 93% of workers
in social work, police, NHS, charities
and NGO’s were experiencing stress.
The regulator informs us that 440,000
people are experiencing stress, anxiety
or depression from work.
The health and safety profession has
also not always helped itself; too eager
to turn health and safety into a dry
management and compliance issue,
separate from engaging debate. Yet how
work impacts on health fundamentally
requires more discussion, openness and
involvement by everyone – from policy
makers, employers, trade unions, tech
developers, the media and, crucially, the
public.
With these deep economic and structural
trends in full flow, change will be difficult.
The British Safety Council, through its
campaign Speak Up, Stay Safe, has
released a hard-hitting video called The
Last Word on how stress can lead to
accidents. But more needs to be done
to create mentally healthy workplaces.
Government needs to give any industrial
strategy a human face to make work
‘work’ for people, employers need to
equip people with the skills to identify
stressors and design work that produces
healthy workplaces and, for all those
interested in the health and well-being
of the nation, our approach needs an
urgent rethink.
The British Safety Council will be
exploring these issues at Health
and Work in a Changing World,
our annual conference in London
on 5th October. Join us to get an
insight from a panel of experts and
to hear how leading businesses are
working to address the challenge
of managing health and work in a
changing world.
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