Harney favours ‘corporate killing’ proposal

TÁNAISTE Mary Harney last night backed a proposal to jail company managers and directors for five years if convicted of ‘corporate killing’.

This proposed offence would, for the first time, make companies and senior managers personally responsible for recklessly causing the death of workers.

Over the past three years, 194 people have died in workplace accidents, but no company or individual has been successfully prosecuted for acting recklessly and causing any of these deaths.

Companies have faced substantial fines following workplace accidents, but no individual or firm has been prosecuted for manslaughter, said the Law Reform Commission.

The commission believes this legal loophole must be covered by introducing an offence called “corporate killing”. “There has been a lot of disquiet because existing laws do not deal adequately with organisations which act recklessly and cause death,” said the commission’s director of research, Raymond Byrne.

The commission’s draft recommendations published yesterday also propose that:

Private and public companies should be responsible for deaths caused by their gross recklessness and open to unlimited multi-million euro fines.

Company managers and directors could face unlimited fines and possible disqualification from holding these posts ever again.

Tánaiste and Enterprise and Employment Minster Mary Harney, who has direct responsibility for company law, launched the commission’s draft consultation paper on corporate killing yesterday.

Ms Harney, who is reviewing health and safety legislation, said: “I support the law moving in the direction of a corporate killing offence and I will take the commission’s recommendations into account when drafting new legislation.”

The Labour Party wants the Tánaiste to publish a Bill immediately to give effect to the commission’s recommendations.

“Fines are not adequate deterrents to companies who are making millions of euro in profits each year and do not pay adequate attention to safety standards,” said Labour’s Brendan Howlin.

Ms Harney will have to wait until the commission makes its final recommendation on corporate killing before introducing any bill.