Draft Corporate Manslaughter Bill

This document contains a range of written evidence submitted to the joint inquiry by the Home Affairs Committee and the Work and Pensions Committee, in relation to the Governments proposals to reform the law on corporate manslaughter, as set out in the draft Bill (Cm 6497, ISBN 010164972X) published in March 2005 for consultation.

This document sets out the Government's proposals to reform the current law on corporate manslaughter, published for pre-legislative scrutiny and consultation with industry, trade unions and the public. The draft Bill seeks to strike a balance between securing company accountability for health and safety incidents involving gross management negligence, whilst avoiding burdensome regulation which might stifle entrepreneurial activity. It proposes a new, specific offence of corporate manslaughter for situations where a gross failing by senior management to take reasonable care for the safety of employees or the public causes a person's death, and would apply to all companies and other types of incorporated body (including many in the public sector such as local authorities), as well as, for the first time, government departments and other Crown bodies. The new offence seeks to move away from the current need to link a company's guilt with the gross negligence of an individual who is taken to embody the organisation, to a more effective means of prosecuting organisational negligence resulting in death which reflects the gravity and consequences of the conduct involved.

This Command Paper contains the Government's responses to (HCP 540-I, session 2005-06, ISBN 0215026683). The current laws on corporate manslaughter link a company's guilt to the gross negligence of a person senior enough to embody the organization. The Government view is that this fails to reflect the complexity of modern corporate life, and that the law needs reforming. A draft Corporate Manslaughter Bill was published 23 March 2005 (Cm. 6497, ISBN 010164972X). The Bill, in theory, should make it easier to prosecute companies and other organizations where gross negligence leads to death, and replace the need to find a "directing mind", a key difficulty with past prosecutions. It would also lift Crown immunity to prosecution for the first time. Over fifteen chapters, the Government sets out its' replies to the Home Affairs and Work and Pensions Committees' recommendations.

Following on from the Government's draft Bill (Cm. 6497, ISBN 010164972X published for pre-legislative scrutiny in March 2005), this Bill has 23 clauses with two schedules and makes provision for a new offence of corporate manslaughter (to be called corporate homicide in Scotland) to apply to all companies and other types of incorporated body (including many in the public sector such as local authorities), as well as, for the first time, government departments and other Crown bodies. This would apply to situations where a gross failing by senior management to take reasonable care for the safety of employees or the public causes a person's death. It seeks to move away from the current need to link a company's guilt with the gross negligence of an individual who is taken to embody the organisation, to a more effective means of prosecuting organisational negligence resulting in death which reflects the gravity and consequences of the conduct involved.

Following on from the Government's draft Bill (Cm. 6497, ISBN 010164972X published for pre-legislative scrutiny in March 2005), this Bill has 23 clauses with two schedules and makes provision for a new offence of corporate manslaughter (to be called corporate homicide in Scotland) to apply to all companies and other types of incorporated body (including many in the public sector such as local authorities), as well as, for the first time, government departments and other Crown bodies. This would apply to situations where a gross failing by senior management to take reasonable care for the safety of employees or the public causes a person's death. It seeks to move away from the current need to link a company's guilt with the gross negligence of an individual who is taken to embody the organisation, to a more effective means of prosecuting organisational negligence resulting in death which reflects the gravity and consequences of the conduct involved.

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill : Amendments to be moved in grand Committee

Corporate Manslaughter and Corporate Homicide Bill : (as amended in grand Committee)