BMEWS
 
Sarah Palin is the other whom Yoda spoke about.

calendar   Tuesday - November 18, 2008

UNSAFE AND UNWELCOME: COUNCIL BANS DOOR MATS.

If these are council homes, I can just about understand it.  It isn’t elf ‘n’ safety I bet.
It’s all about being sued should someone actually trip and get hurt.
Who owns the property? Ah, the city?  Lot-a-money there betcha.  S U E!!


Council bans welcome mats

Portsmouth News
By Rob Dabrowski

Residents in a block of flats have been told to get rid of welcome mats – because they are a trip hazard.
Council bureaucrats said the mats posed a ‘health and safety risk’.
And they have even threatened to take residents to court – with the threat of eviction – if their demands aren’t met.

Letters signed by Gosport housing officer Elspeth White were sent out after a council surveyor visited.

Three residents in Revenge House, at The Anchorage, Gosport, have been told to remove the rubber-backed mats as people could trip on them, particularly if they needed to leave in an emergency.

The council says the health risk is increased by narrow corridors.

Resident Ingrid Buckland, 62, has removed her mat for fear of the council taking action.

‘I just can’t understand all the fuss over these mats – it seems so futile,’ she said. ‘It’s just such a petty little thing and it has got out of hand.

‘I don’t know why the council is saying it might take action over a 99p doormat. I should think the council has bigger things to worry about than three doormats but I’ve moved mine because I don’t want to cause any trouble, it’s just not worth it.’

Gosport Borough Council says if the mats aren’t removed the tenants would be breaking the terms of their lease, which states no objects should be placed in communal area.

Officers will return later this month to check if mats have gone.
But the head of the council’s own housing board thinks it is over the top.

Cllr Keith Gill said: ‘I would be opposed to any kind of legal action. That would be heavy-handed.

‘This is sending out the wrong message and there are more important things that the council should be worrying about.’

Other council tenants in the borough could be sent letters if their mats are deemed to be dangerous.

But the council has not enforced a full ban, saying it would assess each mat on an individual basis.

Council spokeswoman Brenda Brooker said: ‘We, as a local authority and landlord, have a duty of care to all persons entering our communal areas and these should be free from any hazards or obstructions, likely to cause health and safety issues or prevent evacuation.

‘If people are aggrieved at the council’s decision that they should remove items which we consider pose a risk, we have a complaints procedure where they can ask for that decision to be reviewed.

‘Secondly, we would consider the health and safety risk that the particular problem presents and then would consider appropriate action, possibly involving legal action.’

Gosport council’s mat ban is the latest barmy health and safety regulation to be introduced, says the Taxpayers’ Alliance.

Campaign director Mark Wallace said Britain was fast being turned into a nanny state with more and more mindless rules.

‘It is ridiculous that health and safety regulations have gone so far,’ he said.

‘If these safety officers don’t have anything better to do, then
clearly we have no need for them.

‘What started off as a national exercise in preventing serious harm has ended up as an exercise in how to boss people around.’

Tom Mullarkey, chief executive of the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, was also against the mat ban.

He said: ‘The application of common sense and balance is much more reasonable than the seeking of mindless increments towards absolute safety.’

However, the council’s own Lib Dem-run administration has opposed the move.

Cllr Peter Chegwyn, chairman of the community and environment board, added: ‘There’s no question of us taking legal action over something this trivial.’

http://tinyurl.com/6pzbey


avatar

Posted by peiper   United Kingdom  on 11/18/2008 at 01:05 PM   
Filed Under: • Daily LifeUK •  
Comments (0) Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  
Page 1 of 1 pages

Five Most Recent Trackbacks:

Once Again, The One And Only Post
(4 total trackbacks)
Tracked at iHaan.org
The advantage to having a guide with you is thɑt an expert will haѵe very first hand experience dealing and navigating the river with гegional wildlife. Tһomas, there are great…
On: 07/28/23 10:37

The Brownshirts: Partie Deux; These aare the Muscle We've Been Waiting For
(3 total trackbacks)
Tracked at head to the Momarms site
The Brownshirts: Partie Deux; These aare the Muscle We’ve Been Waiting For
On: 03/14/23 11:20

Vietnam Homecoming
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at 广告专题配音 专业从事中文配音跟外文配音制造,北京名传天下配音公司
  专业从事中文配音和外文配音制作,北京名传天下配音公司   北京名传天下专业配音公司成破于2006年12月,是专业从事中 中文配音 文配音跟外文配音的音频制造公司,幻想飞腾配音网领 配音制作 有海内外优良专业配音职员已达500多位,可供给一流的外语配音,长年服务于国内中心级各大媒体、各省市电台电视台,能满意不同客户的各种需要。电话:010-83265555   北京名传天下专业配音公司…
On: 03/20/21 07:00

meaningless marching orders for a thousand travellers ... strife ahead ..
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at Casual Blog
[...] RTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPL [...]
On: 07/17/17 04:28

a small explanation
(1 total trackbacks)
Tracked at yerba mate gourd
Find here top quality how to prepare yerba mate without a gourd that's available in addition at the best price. Get it now!
On: 07/09/17 03:07



DISCLAIMER
Allanspacer

THE SERVICES AND MATERIALS ON THIS WEBSITE ARE PROVIDED "AS IS" AND THE HOSTS OF THIS SITE EXPRESSLY DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES, EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, TO THE EXTENT PERMITTED BY LAW INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO WARRANTIES OF SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, WITH RESPECT TO THE SERVICE OR ANY MATERIALS.

Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:
  1. Keep a firm grasp of Right and Wrong
  2. Stay involved with government on every level and don't let those bastards get away with a thing
  3. Use every legal means to defend yourself in the event of real internal trouble, and, most importantly:
  4. Keep talking to each other, whether here or elsewhere
It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

THE INFORMATION AND OTHER CONTENTS OF THIS WEBSITE ARE DESIGNED TO COMPLY WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. THIS WEBSITE SHALL BE GOVERNED BY AND CONSTRUED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA AND ALL PARTIES IRREVOCABLY SUBMIT TO THE JURISDICTION OF THE AMERICAN COURTS. IF ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE IS CONSTRUED AS BEING CONTRARY TO THE LAWS APPLICABLE IN ANY OTHER COUNTRY, THEN THIS WEBSITE IS NOT INTENDED TO BE ACCESSED BY PERSONS FROM THAT COUNTRY AND ANY PERSONS WHO ARE SUBJECT TO SUCH LAWS SHALL NOT BE ENTITLED TO USE OUR SERVICES UNLESS THEY CAN SATISFY US THAT SUCH USE WOULD BE LAWFUL.


Copyright © 2004-2015 Domain Owner



GNU Terry Pratchett


Oh, and here's some kind of visitor flag counter thingy. Hey, all the cool blogs have one, so I should too. The Visitors Online thingy up at the top doesn't count anything, but it looks neat. It had better, since I paid actual money for it.
free counters