Day 127 - 23 May 95 - Page 68


     
     1        was one of the reasons why they came to us.  They had also
     2        had individual Environmental Health Officers contacting
     3        them about specific accidents and, as I think it says here,
     4        we also came up with quite a high percentage of accidents
     5        reported in our particular sector of the catering industry,
     6        but they recognised that that was probably because we were
     7        just very good at reporting accidents.  The accepted norm
     8        in the catering industry is about one in every -----
     9
    10   Q.   We are coming to that in a minute.  They thought you a
    11        suitable target or subject for an examination or scrutiny,
    12        if I can call it that?
    13        A.  Yes.
    14
    15   Q.   Were you concerned in formulating or deciding McDonald's
    16        response to this approach by the HSE?
    17        A.  No, we were -----
    18
    19   Q.   No, I said, were you personally concerned in the decision
    20        what response should be made by McDonald's?
    21        A.  Concerned in making the decision?
    22
    23   Q.   Yes, were you personally concerned in what McDonald's
    24        response should be?
    25        A.  Well, the response straightaway -----
    26
    27   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  No, I think it is the word "concerned".
    28        Involved, perhaps?
    29
    30   MR. RAMPTON:  My Lord, "concerned" is an old-fashioned word,
    31        Mrs. Barnes, which used to mean just involved or interested
    32        in; it has now taken on a frightful cast of anxiety which
    33        it did not used to have.  Were you involved in the
    34        decision?
    35        A.  My advice to senior management was that they should
    36        come in but senior management were in favour of it anyway.
    37
    38   Q.   Right.  Why were McDonald's in favour of this approach by
    39        what might, I suppose, have been potentially a hostile
    40        body?
    41        A.  Well, one of our concerns, using it in the "now" sense,
    42        was that we were getting these different Environmental
    43        Health Officers all wanting us to change our systems in a
    44        particular way which, as we would, you know, was aimed at
    45        building up strong relationships with local authorities,
    46        you can only do so much before changing it, for one person
    47        starts affecting the way you have changed it for somebody
    48        else.
    49
    50        So, we really saw this as being an opportunity to have the 
    51        experts come in and look at our systems and give us advice 
    52        that we could then share with other local authorities. 
    53
    54   Q.   You say "experts come in", it sounds a bit like a
    55        consultancy; did you pay them to do this work?
    56        A.  No.
    57
    58   Q.   Did they pay you to be allowed to do it?
    59        A.  No.
    60

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