Letter: Vital role of busybodies

LINDA GRANT thinks 'health and safety is threatening to become a national obsession' ('The safety inspector cometh', 9 May). If only it were. Recession-hit firms take advantage of many employees' belief that accidents are things that happen to other people, and cut back on safety. This is not confined to small businesses. Well-known multi-nationals will not spend money on basic repairs, resulting in injuries to their staff.

It is the 'busybodies' (many of them union officers) who keep safety on the agenda. Quite right that managers should accept responsibility for their employees.

Matt Gillett

Whitehall, Bristol