I’m looking at my blogs stats, and seeing a small but healthy level of interest. What is interesting is that a number of people pitch up here after searching for “Simon Jenkins” I’ve just Googled it, and my blog doesn’t appear on the first page. I’m too lazy to look further, but I’m guessing any link to me is pages deep in Google, so those coming to me through that search must be determined researchers. I bet they’re disappointed, my only reference to Simon Jenkins thus far has been a poorly typed “live” blog from his speech at a conference.
I feel its my duty to offer something controversial, like “Why Simon Jenkins is Wrong”. But, Google that, and you get a parade of similarly titled blog posts. So I simply take this opportunity to say thank you to him for driving a little attention my way, my drivel isn’t worthy to be compared to his writing.
Our new chair has a vision for Trust, which he mentioned in that speech but also sets out in an article for the Times. There’s a lot in there I like: he talks of our house managers becoming impresarios, creating engaging atmospheres in our mansions. But there is something I take issue with. He talks of the National Trust being a victim of overbearing Health and Safety. And its not the first time that he’s said that.
This role I have sits me on the regional Health and Safety Committee and from my limited experience it isn’t legislation, or the HSE, that is the problem. The committee considers actual accidents that have happened, and tries to learn lessons from them that might prevent the same thing happening again. It involves a lot of people, but it doesn’t happen often, and I think my time is well spent. Broadly speaking, I see the HSE doing the same thing on a national scale.
It isn’t legislation or the HSE that decides whether “the manager of an adventure centre in the Lake District has to fill in a risk assesment for each party of schoolchildren.” (Which in fact they don’t. Its up to the leader of the school-party to make the risk assessment. What we do, to help them, is give them a pre-prepared form or “exchange of information” which lists the possible risks that we are aware of.) It is not “Overzealous health and safety regulations” which “are impeding more public participation in our properties.” It is greed. It is compensation lawyers, and the people who see the National Trust as wealthy well-insured organisation, that will more than likely pay out on a personal injury claim. The sort of people who jump from a tree and break their leg, then suggest we should compensate them because we hadn’t taken reasonable measures to ensure our trees where not easy to climb!
So there you have it. Simon Jenkins was wrong after all.
