Clause 2 - Statements of Inherent Risk
Promotion of Volunteering Bill
2:30 pm
Mr Julian Brazier (Shadow Minister, International Affairs; Canterbury, Conservative)
I wanted briefly to describe to the Committee a few current cases, details of which were sent to me by the insurance adviser to the Central Council of Physical Recreation, to show that there is a real problem.
A football referee is being sued because the local park pitch had a small hole in it and a goalie fell into it. That is a real case. It has been reported in The Sun. All the cases that I am citing have had to be disguised, for obvious reasons, although in the first the person concerned was willing to go on the record. A member of a walking group took part in a trip with about 15 friends, one of whom was injured. The person who originally organised the group was sued on the ground that he was the de facto group leader, simply because he was the most qualified person there. The trip took place in Wales in the summer of 2000. The individual is an active charity worker and the walk was raising money for charity. The case continues.