There are likely to be some changes to health and safety legislation in 2012 affecting all businesses and self-employed people.

The government announced it has accepted all of the recommendations in the Lofstedt Review report published at the end of November.

The review, “Reclaiming health & safety for all: An independent review of health & safety legislation” took six months to carry out and was focused on legislation that put undue costs on businesses whilst doing little to improve health and safety.

The government is committed to cutting health and safety red tape in early 2012.

There is a target to reduce the current 200 different regulations and supporting Approved Codes of Practice by at least a third over the next three years, by combining, simplifying and abolishing.

The 100 page report includes some interesting recommendations.

Employers should not be held responsible for damages when they have done all they can to manage risk. The emphasis should be on employees taking personal responsibility.

Health and safety legislation should not apply to self-employed people who pose no risk to other people from their work.

There should be better guidance on what is “reasonably practicable” and on specific issues such as explaining the situation that annual portable appliance testing is not a mandatory requirement.

The report’s author, Prof Lofstedt does not want to see a radical alteration to health and safety legislation, but thinks better interpretation of the regulations and proportionate risk management make good business sense.

The consultation process will begin this month and several reviews need to be completed by the summer.

The hope for 2012 is that the review will lead to less red tape and bureaucracy for business without increasing the risk of accidents and illnesses in the workplace.