As we continue with our journey into the second year of the coalition’s five year financial plan, the unprecedented cuts announced in 2010 have taken effect, resulting in unemployment for thousands of public sector workers. For those that remain, the workload has increased along with pressure; the public expects high quality public services and failures are treated mercilessly by the press.
The consequences of cuts are clear; we are now in the world beyond the ‘looking glass’. The effect on claims and claims spend is increased numbers and costs. The ‘total cost of risk’ is now starting to become apparent. Savings on head count did reduce direct costs last year, but claims will emerge this year. Added to that there is reduced judicial sympathy for public sector defendants, as cuts are seen as no excuse for reducing safety standards. These sessions will prepare delegates for this stark new reality. We open with the policy and financial overview.
How many claims are out there? What do they cost? What is next? For the present, the main business of defending EL and PL claims continues and we will provide updates on both. Recent high profile failings in social care have brought new focus to public sector long-tail (abuse) claims. A session on children’s issues will cover this.
Finally, whilst the HSE itself has suffered a massive 35% budget cut, it hopes to recoup some of the costs of attendance on a duty holder as part of the costs recovery scheme which will be active from April 2012. The question remains whether this change gives it an interest in perusing future cases. Our session will cover the developments of the last 18 months incorporating the Young report and Löfstedt review and what this means in terms of health and safety prosecutions.
This is the session you cannot afford to miss. Using these insights, the world need not end in 2012.
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