HSE crane register

The government is considering a register of tower cranes, after a number of recent incidents and pressure from union-based campaigners. James Purnell, secretary of state at the Department of Work and Pensions, has asked the HSE to draw up the arguments for and against such a move.

Employers’ organisations in the construction industry are likely to lobby against a register. However unions and organisations such as the Battersea Crane Disaster Action Group are fighting for the register as part of a package of measures needed to make the industry safer.