"Plans for separate Scottish legislation on corporate manslaughter have been shelved after government lawyers on both sides of the border decided in the last few days that it was a reserved issue, and was therefore a matter for Westminster's MPs.
Although ministers are battling behind the scenes over the detail of the bill, the government intends to publish the legislation before the House of Commons rises next week for the summer recess. It is understood that John Reid, the Home Secretary, has written to the legislative and domestic affairs committees, requesting that the legislation be allocated time in the parliamentary timetable. Cathy Jamieson, Scotland's Justice Minister, expected to take the lead on Scottish legislation, although it was not included in the Holyrood timetable. Now lawyers in the Scottish Executive and Whitehall have decreed corporate killing is a health and safety issue rather than one of criminal justice."
This is despite the fact that the Executive had set up its own expert working group to make recommendations on the matter. The report of the group is here. Even a brief skim of the report indicates that lawyers cannot simply 'decree' corporate killing to be a health and safety issue. Among other things, the group clearly recommends that Scotland should not simply tag along behind England in this matter. But the Executive is clearly not prepared to back the judgement of the group which it appointed. Worse, it sneaks out its decisions during the parliamentary recess without even a press release.
By a bitter irony, the BBC Scotland website today has this as its lead story:
"Oil giant Shell has been criticised for defects and failings after the deaths of two men on the Brent Bravo platform.
Keith Moncrieff, 45, from Invergowrie, and Sean McCue, 22, from Kennoway in Fife, died in an accident in a leg of the platform in September 2003.
A sheriff said the deaths may have been prevented if a temporary repair had been managed and the risk of working in the leg had been properly assessed.
Shell said that safety was a top priority.
Mr Moncrieff and Mr McCue had been making an inspection of a temporary repair patch in the platform leg when they were overcome by gas.
Shell was later fined £900,000 after admitting health and safety breaches, including failing to carry out a risk assessment on the platform.
A fatal accident inquiry, which was conducted by Sheriff Colin Harris, lasted 38 days and took evidence from 61 witnesses."
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