The average fine following a prosecution for poor health and safety practices has increased by almost 40% to �12,000.

Health and safety offences can cause extreme pain and grief... and it is vital that the level of fines reflects this

Bill Callaghan, chairman, Health and Safety Commission

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE), which is responsible for bringing prosecutions against firms, said the "marked increase" in fines was due to courts taking a dim view of firms that were lax with worker safety.

The report showed that HSE inspectors visited 234,000 UK employers during the year to April 2002.

Stiffer penalties

More than 11,000 improvement notices were served on employers and 1,064 prosecutions followed.

Of those firms prosecuted 84% were convicted in the courts.

Construction, manufacturing, mining and quarrying firms faced the biggest increase in fines following a successful prosecution, the HSE said.

"Health and safety offences are serious crimes," said Bill Callaghan, Health and Safety Commission chairman.

"They can cause extreme pain and grief to the victims and their families and it is vital that the level of fines reflects this."

Mr Callaghan added that he was "very encouraged" by the level of fine being imposed, and hoped that firms would face yet stiffer penalties in future.

Haphazard

However, last October, the Centre for Corporate Accountability (CCA) said there has been a serious decline in the number of workplace inspections - a 41% drop - over the last five years.

On average, a workplace would be inspected once every 20 years.

Almost 300 people in Britain are killed in the workplace every year, and 30,000 are seriously injured.

Health and safety enforcement in offices and other workplaces was described in the report as "minimal and haphazard".