Union policies or regulations are
backed by solid evidence has been
announced. Addressing delegates at
the IOSH 2012 conference and
exhibition, in Manchester, Professor
Ragnar Löfstedt announced a new
cross-party parliamentary committee
of MEPs to promote evidence-based
policy making in the EU.

The informal committee, will be
launched at the European Parliament
in Brussels in June and was one of a
number of recommendations made
by Prof Löfstedt in last year’s UK
Government-commissioned review
of health and safety regulations.

He said: “We feel it’s very
important to promote evidence-based
policy making in Europe. At present
we feel that the European Parliament
is not always evidence-based in its
policy making. With this committee,
we have a welcome opportunity to
look at this more closely.”
IOSH will support the launch of
the committee. Chief Executive Rob
Strange OBE said: “We have always
welcomed evidence-based policymaking
and welcome this committee
and its vision of increasing the use of
science to support health and safety
regulations. We want to see that
regulations are only introduced when
they are based on good research and
a genuine need.”