FIRMS should not sacrifice health and safety standards as a result of recession-led cutbacks.

That was the call today by Health and Safety Executive chair Judith Hackitt.

Speaking at the HSE’s Bootle headquarters she warned that budget cuts now could mean disaster in the future.

She said: “We are quite concerned that there is evidence from a variety of sources that businesses think during a recession a lack of money means they can cut back on things and that includes health and safety.

“People might not get hurt now, but things might go wrong in the future.

“Our message is very clear – this is not a time to cut back on health and safety because you can’t afford to have anyone seriously injured when you need them most of all in a recession.”

Ms Hackitt said health and safety need not cost much if firms involve their workforce. She said: “The workforce can find different ways of working, they can share good practice or come up with their own solutions.”

Ms Hackitt was launching a new HSE strategy with Secretary of State James Purnell in London today encouraging companies to commit to improving health and safety standards.

She said: “We are inviting companies to sign up to a commitment to health and safety and there will be some major players supporting the need to keep health and safety at the top of the agenda during the recession.”