The Lord Advocate, Elish Angiolini QC, and the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Peter Hain MP, today announced the chair and terms of reference for the public inquiry into the tragic plastics factory explosion and building collapse which occurred in Glasgow on 11 May 2004.
Lord Gill, the Lord Justice Clerk, has been appointed Chairman of the public inquiry, which will be heard under the UK Inquiries Act 2005. Roy Martin QC has also been appointed as counsel to the Inquiry.
The terms of reference for the inquiry are:
- To inquire into the circumstances leading up to the incident on 11 May 2004 at the premises occupied by the ICL group of companies, Grovepark Mills, Maryhill, Glasgow.
- To consider the safety and related issues arising from such an inquiry, including the regulation of the activities at Grovepark Mills.
- To make recommendations in the light of the lessons identified from the causation and circumstances leading up to the incident.
- To report as soon as practicable.
The Lord Advocate, Elish Angiolini QC, said:
"The events of the 11 May 2004 have a continuing impact on the lives of many people, on all those who were working in the factory that day, on the dozens of people who were injured, and especially on those who lost a loved one.
"This public inquiry will provide an opportunity, not only to fully air the circumstances which led up to that incident, but also to make sure that lessons are learned to help prevent another tragedy like this occurring."
Peter Hain said:
"I am pleased Lord Gill has agreed to Chair the inquiry into the tragic and terrible events in Glasgow. Now that we have a chair in place, and an agreement on the terms of reference, we can ensure that the inquiry will be focussed on the events, and the families will not have to wait unduly for answers."
NOTES FOR EDITORS
1. The Lord Advocate today wrote to the Presiding Officer of the Scottish Parliament advising him of the remit of the inquiry and the appointment of Lord Gill as the Chair. The letter has been lodged with SPiCE. Peter Hain MP also lodged the details of the remit with Westminster.
- The decision to hold a joint public inquiry was announced on 1 October 2007.
- On 11 May 2004 there was an explosion at a plastics factory operated by ICL Plastics Ltd and ICL Tech Ltd in Maryhill, Glasgow. As a result 9 people died and 33 were injured.
4. The Health and Safety Executive and the police, working closely with staff from the Glasgow Procurator Fiscal's Office, began a painstaking investigation into the circumstances surrounding the tragedy. As a result both ICL Plastics Ltd and ICL Tech Ltd were prosecuted for various health and safety breaches over a number of years.
5. On 17 August 2007 both companies pled guilty to all charges and were subsequently fined £200,000 each on 28 August.
6. The Lord Advocate has sole jurisdiction for the investigation of deaths in Scotland. Following the conclusion of criminal proceedings she considered the form and remit of the inquiry, and in particular whether the issues could be properly addressed at a Fatal Accident Inquiry or another form of public inquiry.
Biography
The Right Hon Lord Gill, the Lord Justice Clerk
Lord Gill is Scotland's second most senior judge.
Lord Gill practised at the Scottish Bar from 1967 to 1994 and at the English Bar from 1991 to 1994. He was appointed to the Bench in 1994. He was Chairman of the Scottish Law Commission from 1996 to 2001 when he was appointed Lord Justice Clerk.
When he was in practice at the Scottish Bar he was counsel in the inquiries into the Clarkston Disaster and the Lockerbie Disaster, and in several nuclear inquiries, including the lengthy inquiry into the proposed reprocessing plant at Dounreay (1987). Between 1996 and 2001 Lord Gill dealt with all 239 of the civil actions in the Court of Session relating to the Braer oil-spill in Shetland. He was one of the appeal judges in the litigation arising from the Piper Alpha disaster.
Lord Gill is Chairman of the Civil Courts Review which will be reporting to the Scottish Government in 2009.
He is the author of the standard textbook on agricultural holdings in Scotland and is founder and General Editor of the Scottish Planning Encyclopedia.
Lord Gill was chairman of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama from 1999 to 2006. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and of the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. He holds five honorary doctorates.
Contact:
Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service
0844 561 4263/ 3708
www.copfs.gov.uk
Department for Work and Pensions:
Press office: 020 3267 5144
www.dwp.gov.uk