Group set to recommend jail for corporate homicide
19 Oct 05
Scottish panel believed to want tougher measures than those before UK Parliament
New plans to prosecute companies for corporate killings could result in directors going to prison, according to a report in today's Herald.
A group set up by the Justice Minister Cathy Jamieson to examine the issues around corporate culpable homicide is believed to have recommended that Scottish Ministers consider changes made to similar laws in Australia and Canada, rather than the bill currently going through Westminister which will apply to companies in England and Wales.
The group recommends making corporate homicide a statutory offence.
The gas supply company Transco was fined £15 million earlier this year for breaches in safety which led to the deaths of the Findlay family in Larkhall, when their home was destroyed in an explosion. The company was tried under the health and safety legislation after the appeal court rejected the corporate homicide charge which was initially brought against it.
The law in Canada states that those with supervisory responsibilities need to take reasonable steps to prevent bodily harm, and companies and senior officers can be prosecuted for injuries as well as deaths. In Australia, senior officers can go to prison for up to 25 years if found guilty of the charge.
The bill currently going through Westminster does not prescribe criminal penalties for companies where their employees are injured, or that individual directors might be held responsible. Under the Health and Safety Act companies can face unlimited fines.
A spokesperson for the Scottish Executive said the group was still considering its recommendations and would report to the Justice Minister in due course.