Day 127 - 23 May 95 - Page 18
1 Q. Yes, I understand.
2
3 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Did you say that you returned as Health and
4 Safety Officer in July 1990 or 1991? I think you said
5 1991. I know that in your statement you have a different
6 date and Mr. Rampton has put 1990 to you just now.
7 A. It must be 1990 because it is five years this July.
8
9 Q. So 1990.
10
11 MR. RAMPTON: I understand you are also a Member of the
12 Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, and also the
13 Institute of Food Science and Technology?
14 A. I am.
15
16 Q. Are those memberships acquired by qualification or simply
17 by paying a subscription or what?
18 A. They are by qualification and experience. The
19 Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, you need the
20 NIBOSH Diploma and also have had three years experience.
21 I cannot quite remember what the same is for the Institute
22 of Food Science and Technology now, but I qualified for
23 that having worked for five years in Quality Assurance and
24 having my biochemistry degree.
25
26 Q. You did not have to do an exam for membership of those
27 Institutes?
28 A. No, no.
29
30 Q. Before I forget Mrs. Barnes, you do have responsibility,
31 I think, in McDonald's for food safety?
32 A. Yes, when I was appointed, the Food Safety Act had also
33 just been implemented, so with my Quality Assurance
34 background, I also was involved with that, although the
35 amount of involvement I have had with that has varied over
36 the five years.
37
38 Q. That is what I was going to say. I do not myself propose
39 to ask you any questions about that feature of your
40 responsibility. We have had Mr. Keith Kenny and Mr. John
41 Atherton giving evidence in this court as well as various
42 experts. Are you content that I should leave that area to
43 them?
44 A. Certainly Keith has greater expertise than I.
45
46 Q. Going back to risk assessment: Do you look at the gravity
47 of the risk as well as where and when and to whom it may
48 occur?
49 A. Yes, we do in terms of what the likely outcome of any
50 accident would be. That, as I say, can be difficult
51 because it is very often down to luck as to what the
52 outcome would be. I suppose, perhaps, a good example
53 there, since it is our most frequent type of accident,
54 would be a slipping accident, where for the majority of
55 times if somebody slipped over they would just end up with
56 a minor bruise.
57
58 Q. How do you know that, for example, a slipping type of
59 accident is the most or one of the more frequent kinds of
60 accidents?
