Caterer and Hotelkeeper – 29695

Sproat gives advice on electricity

A HOTEL chain spent £350,000 on unnecessary electrical inspections in 1992 as a result of the Electricity at Work regulations, it emerged last week.

That bill had been run up when electricians were called in to test every movable piece of electrical equipment at a cost of £3.50 per item, according to tourism minister Iain Sproat.

Answering a question from Quentin Davies, MP for Stamford and Spalding, Mr Sproat said the rules were among the seven most worrying regulatory problems identified by the hospitality industry during research for the Deregulation Bill.

He reiterated advice given by the Health & Safety Executive that much of what was required by the regulations could be achieved by a simple visual inspection by staff.