Day 086 - 09 Feb 95 - Page 26
1 named device involves a risk of serious personal injury.
2 The portable electrical appliances used in the wash up area
3 of the premises obviously do not have such devices at that
4 time. Therefore, he has said that portable electrical
5 appliances without the device shall not be used after
6 20th November which gives just over a week for McDonald's
7 to fit devices to any such portable equipment which they
8 wish to continue to use in the wash-up area.
9 A. Yes, I think so.
10
11 Q. Provided they fit the devices in by 20th, they can carry on
12 using portable electrical devices in the wash-up area.
13 They can use the ones they are using at the moment for the
14 next eight days and by that time they will have devices
15 fitted and they can carry on using ones with devices, which
16 might be thought to be very sensible matching safety with
17 the practicalities of McDonald's carry on its business?
18 A. Yes.
19
20 MR. MORRIS: It did say in that document we had before that not
21 having those devices was in contravention of Regulation 60
22 of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, which you
23 agreed with. But the Improvement Notice is what I am
24 concerned with. An Improvement Notice, does it have the
25 similar weight, well, a Prohibition Notice, obviously, is
26 prohibiting something. If you want someone to increase
27 their inspections of certain appliances, you cannot serve a
28 Prohibition Notice but you could serve an Improvement
29 Notice. So, it seems to me -- am I right or am I wrong;
30 you are an expert on health and safety ---
31 A. Thanks you.
32
33 Q. -- that is your job anyway -- a Prohibition Notice and an
34 Improvement Notice are almost, you know, two aspects of the
35 same power that a local authority may have; is that
36 correct?
37 A. Well, my expert opinion on that, if you like, is that a
38 Prohibition Notice, there is no argument whatsoever with
39 that.
40
41 MR. JUSTICE BELL: No, you are in breach of the regulations and
42 you have to put it right?
43 A. That is right.
44
45 Q. The Improvement Notice -----
46 A. Improvement Notices can -- I think we have a number of
47 Improvement Notices served on us, and occasionally it is
48 for something like a bin did not have a lid on it, and it
49 would say that they want a lid on that bin. It is an
50 Improvement Notice. We would write back and explain why
51 there is not one on and why we do not do it because we have
52 another procedure, and then the matter is left to rest.
53 The point I am making is that asked if an Improvement
54 Notice is the same as a Prohibition one, I do not believe
55 it is.
56
57 Q. I am certainly no expert in this field, but most Notices
58 under the various regulatory provisions also have
59 provisions for counter notices, or things of that kind, and
60 court hearings, if necessary, but they mostly not necessary
