Clause 5 - Persons assisting those injured or suffering
Promotion of Volunteering Bill
4:30 pm
Ms Fiona Mactaggart (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Race Equality, Community Policy and Civil Renewal), Home Office; Slough, Labour)
I have always taken the approach when dealing with issues such as those in the Bill that we need evidence not only of the need to deal with the matters, but that the proposed solutions will work. I shall take that approach with every clause, which is why I am grateful that the hon. Member for Canterbury recognises that we should not let the existence of good Samaritan-type legislation in a
litigious culture such as that of the USA lead us to introduce a far-reaching and, in some ways, flawed provision without clear and convincing evidence that there is a problem and that the legislation is the best way to tackle it.
I share the hon. Gentleman's belief that those conditions have not been met in this case. To introduce such a measure would be excessive. It could have extremely damaging effects on the treatment of injured people by good Samaritans if it protects the latter from any responsibility for their actions. We will come later in the debate to responsibility, which is at the heart of the Bill.
In the discussions that we have to try to find consensus, I have been grateful to the hon. Gentleman for recognising the issue of responsibility. The Government's ambition is to ensure that the legislation recognises that people must act responsibly. If we were to accept this widely drawn clause, which would apply whenever one person endeavours to provide assistance to another, we could fail to distinguish between people who assist responsibly and those who act irresponsibly. We do not wish to discourage people from giving assistance to those whom they believe are injured or in distress, but it is important that they act sensibly and are not irresponsible, however well meaning they are. Someone can be irresponsible and well intentioned at the same time. That is at the heart of the Bill. We are trying to ensure that well-intentioned people are not given license to be irresponsible. If the clause were to survive, there would be a risk that such people would be permitted to commit ill-advised actions that could make matters worse.