What does the Health and Safety at Work Act require?
The Health and Safety at Work Act stipulates that the Metropolitan Police should ensure its operations do not put the public at risk. The relevant part of the Health and Safety At Work Act which applies to the Menezes case states: “It shall be the duty of every employer to conduct his undertaking in a such a way as to ensure, so far as reasonably practicable, that persons not in his employment who may be affected thereby are not thereby exposed to risks to their health and safety.” What could the penalty be? The penalty on conviction is an unlimited fine. If previous cases involving other organisations are anything to go by, this could run into millions of pounds. The decision to bring a prosecution under the act may lead to a criminal trial. The strategy used to deal with suspected suicide bombers and the tactics used on the day of the shooting would be raised in court, and it is likely senior officers would be asked to account for what happend. What do the family of Jean Charles de M
