Hyslop Marks West Lothian International Workers Memorial Day
Fiona Hyslop MSP for Linlithgow constituency attended and delivered a speech at West Lothian’s International Workers Memorial Day in Bathgate on Saturday (28th April). Hyslop hit out at cuts from the Westminster Government to Health and Safety Executive saying that more and more often, they are simply reacting to concerns rather than proactively policing safety issues.
Commenting on the day, Fiona said;
“I was honoured to deliver a keynote speech at such an important event, to mark International Workers’ Memorial Day – a tribute in remembering workers who have died, been injured or made seriously ill through work.
“West Lothian was an early pioneer of commemorating this day and would like to thank West Lothian Trade Council for developing the day to include important platforms for vital services.
“Each year, across the world, more than 2 million men and women die as a result of work related accidents and diseases. Annually, asbestos claims 100,000 lives wordwide. To put this into perspective, across the globe, one worker will die every 15 seconds, that’s 6,000 workers every day.
“As the MSP for Linlithgow constituency I am very pleased that we have a Parliament which, with cross party support, took forward the Damages Asbestos Related Conditions (Scotland) Act (2009), which was later successfully defended by the Scottish Government when the Supreme Court dismissed a legal challenge from insurers in a real triumph for progressive politics. (October 2011)
“Since the Scottish Health and Safety Division was set up in March 2009, some 219 cases have been, or are being, dealt with by the unit. Of those, 78 have concluded and 77 have resulted in convictions. That is a conviction rate of about 99% – a substantial achievement that ought to be recognised.”
Ms Hyslop concluded;
“This day is about marking international solidarity, the need for political and legal change but it is also about people – the people we have lost and those that are still living. With time, energy and determination, the anger and grief that we feel for our loved ones can be transformed into a focus to campaign for change. Remember the dead; fight for the living.”