Blog Image

Alan Dransfield's Blog

Freedom of Information and Health and Safety

This blog is aimed at shaming those who ignore health and safety and those who abuse the Freedom of Information Act out of laziness, corruption or to cover up incompetence.

A worrying response

Lightning Protection Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:43:19

Subject: Exeter City Council Lightning Failures

Dear Mr Bradshaw

I acknowledge and thank you for your recent letter with an attached letter from the Exeter City Council.

Quite frankly, the ECC response is most disconcerting and it would appear to me that the senior management at the ECC are completely clueless to lightning dangers and requirements for the same..

quote from the Assistant Director Of Development Mr Richard Short:-

“LIGHTNING STRIKES ARE NOT CONSIDERED TO BE SIGNIFICANT RISK TO HEALTH. IT’S MAIN IMPACT TENDS TO BE ON ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS, IT SYSTEMS & ALARMS.”

Such statements are pure, unadulterated hogwash and he should not be in the position of trust which he currently holds if he doesn’t have the basic knowledge of electrical protection for buildings and structures and the general public’s safety and in particular BS/EN-62305/2008.

No wonder the City of Exeter has so many non-compliant structures and buildings which have not been provisioned with minimum lightning protection.

He also claims the ECC former planning office Mr Alan Stokes was in regular touch with me, which is incorrect because Alan Stokes was also oblivious to lightning dangers and ignored my letters of concern..

Mr Short goes on to say,” THERE IS NO REQUIREMENT IN BUILDING REGULATIONS OR PLANNING APPROVAL FOR LIGHTNING PROTECTION”.

There is a requirement to adhere to

1. BS/EN 62305/2008.

2.Construction Design Management (CDM 2004/07)

3.The Electrical Works Act 1998.

All three acts most certainly clearly state that a Lightning Risk Assessment shall be carried out at design phase.

I request my MP to now call for an emergency meeting with the ECC and the HSE to address the apparent ignorance of lightning protection in the City.

Did you not do the basic Faraday Cage history at school Mr Bradshaw? Obviously not or you would not have said Mr Richard Short’s letter would be useful to me. His letter is about as much use to me as the lightning protection at numerous structures and buildings that the ECC have approved.

Mr Short also claims the Printworks has been provisioned with lightning protection which again I say is hogwash, ditto for the RDE Hospital, numerous bridges around the City ,1/2 doz PFI schools, leisure centres, Climbing Centre on the Quay, swimming pools, John Lewis Store, Pricesshay Complex, etc, etc. Oh yes, and the DCC HQ.

In essence, it would appear the ECC Planning Authorities are failing their fiduciary duty of care when issuing Planning Completion Certificates. The signature of Planning Completion Certificate with full knowledge of lightning protection failures is a fraudulent act.

I suggest you also contact the local constabulary on this matter.

In essence, Mr Richard Short’s letter (undated and unsigned) is prima facie grounds that the Exeter City Council have been grossly negligent to lightning protection.

For your information, action and files

With thanks

Yours sincerely

Alan M Dransfield.



Is it insured?

Olympic Stadium Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:31:54

Email sent – 25 October 2014 06:57

Attn the CEO of West Ham Football Club

Dear Madam.

As you are aware, your stadium is proposed to be used for next year’s Rugby Cup Final and in particular 1/2 doz qualifying games.

I also understand that owing to the recent renovation of the stadium works by Balfour Beatty your sports ground will be roofless for these games.

This leads me to consider your stadium will not be provisioned with any Lightning Protection Systems (LPS) for the World Cup because the stadium was/is designed to utilise the roof material (aluminum) as the LPS Finials.

This can be verified by the approved LPS Risk Assessment for the second phase of the Olympic Stadium. Would you be so kind as to provide me with a PDF copy of your Lightning Risk Assessment please?

In the event your stadium was struck by lightning during the World Cup, I shudder to think the consequences of 75,000 spectators devoid of any Lightning Protection System. Is your public liability insurance company aware of this?

With thanks

Yours sincerely

Alan M Dransfield

PS

I have included the Balfour Beatty National Manager for Health and Safety in my mailing list.



£580m but is it fit for purpose?

Olympic Stadium Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:28:35

Email sent – 25 October 2014 06:45

Dear Mr Bradshaw

Cost of Olympic Stadium hits £580m after green light for final phase | Sport | The Guardian

Quelle surprise Balfour Beatty have overshot the budget on the subject title .
Such fiscal cock-ups are a secondary issue.

I have serious concern for public safety of the Rugby World Cup spectators using this particular stadium for 5 matches next summer.

Please see the following article which reveals Balfour Beatty intend to withdraw from this stadium which leaves the stadium roofless for the Rugby World Cup.
It would automatically follow that the stadium would not be provisioned with any Lightning Protection System.

I fully realise this is outside your remit but I wish my MP to alert the appropriate oversight authorities owing to the life threatening potential

For your information action and files

Yours sincerely

Alan M Dransfield
http://www.theguardian.com/sport/2014/jan/06/olympic-stadium-costs-balfour-beatty



No transparency or accountability on £2billion public contract

PFI Hospitals Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:22:59

Subject: HEALTH AND SAFETY ISSUES AT QUEEN ELIZABTH HOSPITAL IN BIRMINGHAM

Date: 27 October 2014 05:49

Attn Rt Hon Jeremy Hunt. Secretary of State for Health

Dear Sir

I am writing to you under your official role as Health Secretary.

Please see the Channel 4 article ref the subject title. It is hardly

surprising that there are serious health and safety (H&S ) issues at this

particular hospital simply because the oversight authorities have failed

their duty of care during the design, construction and operational phases of

this hospital.

In particular, the Construction Design Management (CDM)2004/07 Act has been

willfully and flagrantly abused.

At this juncture, the only people who know what happened during the CDM

phases are the Balfour Beatty Group, which is completely unacceptable.

I refer to the As Built Health and Safety Files (ABHSF), which are legally

bound to be retained on the premises for public scrutiny which have gone AWOL.

The total cost of this Hospital is £2.6 BILLION pounds and the transparency, accountability and security (TAS)of public funds is known to the Balfour

Beatty Group only.

This is totally unacceptable and I call for a public inquiry into the

funding and operations of this hospital.

How many other PFI projects nationwide built by the Balfour Beatty Group

are in the same state?

With thanks

Yours sincerely

Alan M Dransfield

http://www.channel4.com/news/chlorine-contamination-at-nhs-flagship-sparks-investigation



Who foots the bill if a PFI contractor goes bankrupt?

PFI Schools Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:17:31

Email sent – 27 October 2014 07:22

Dear Mr Bradshaw

Can you please explain to me what happens to the debt in the event a PFI contractor goes bankrupt?

Let me give you a couple of clear examples.

1. Carrilion

As you are aware, Carrilion are the PFI Contractors for Exeter 6 PFI schools.

2. Balfour Beatty Group who hold multi BILLION Pounds PFI Contractors nationwide.

Are these PFI contracts adequately ring-fenced in the event of bankruptcy?

Could this be why PFI figures are purposely omitted from the National Debt.

I suppose the taxpayer will pick up the bill for any PFI bankruptcies.

Look forward to your response.

With thanks

Alan M Dransfield



Met Office – new computer

Lightning Protection Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:10:45

Email sent –

28 October 2014 09:02

Dear Mr Bradshaw

As you are aware the Met Office is currently installing a new £100 million computer.
Let’s hope it is not sensitive to lightning damage, because The Met Office does not hold any Lightning a Risk Assessment and they recently refused my FOIA request based on national security exemption.

Has Al Quida or IS developed a Lightning Weapon?

For your information action and files

Alan M Dransfield



Is the ICO working? No.

Vexatious Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:07:55

Email sent – 28 October 2014 16:00

Mr Ed Bealle

Parliamentary Justice Select Committee.

IS THE ICO REALLY WORKING

Dear Sir

One question which must be asked of the ICO by your Justice Select committee is the subject title.

The answer must surely be a resounding No.

Please see the following passage from the ICO website.

“About the ICO

The ICO’s mission is to uphold information rights in the public

interest, promoting openness by public bodies and data privacy for

individuals.

The ICO is the UK’s independent public authority set up to uphold information

rights. We do this by promoting good practice, ruling on complaints providing

information to individuals and organisations and taking appropriate action

where the law is broken.

The ICO enforces and oversees the Freedom of Information Act, the

Environmental Information Regulations, the Data Protection Act and the

Privacy and Electronic Communication Regulations.”

This statement by the ICO is at best hogwash and at worst a tool to designed to assist the passage of fraud – I suggest the latter.

The mission statement by the ICO crashes on take off because perusal of the ICO decsion notices website would confirm that 90% of the ICO decision notices have gone in favour of the public authority and not the complainant.

It is also consistently obvious the ICO have no independence whatsoever, because they investigate cases against themselves.

Yours in disgust

Dransfield



Exeter University

Lightning Protection Posted on Sat, December 27, 2014 17:02:42

Email sent –

29 October 2014 13:27

Dear Mr Bradshaw

Thank you for your letter

ref the Exeter University (EU) Accommodation Unit (Print Works) and thank you also for writing to the CRM Ltd ref my concerns over lightning protection dangers..

At least the EU Vice Chancellor’s Office has accepted that the EU students reside in this Print Works Premises.

I think the EU are being somewhat disingenuous by not accepting that student accommodation does come under their remit; hence I would have envisaged the EU to hold a duty of care on such matters.

As you are aware none of the EU premises across Exeter, accommodation, lecture and classrooms have been provisioned with Lightning Risk Assessment (LRA) as per BS/EN/62305.

Dependant upon the response you get from the CRM Ltd, I would ask you to write to the EU Principal and ask him for an explanation why LRA has been omitted.

With thanks

Yours sincerely

Alan M Dransfield.



Next »