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March/April 2023 issue

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Construction
News

Fraudster jailed for selling fake construction skills cards

Open-access content Friday 9th November 2018
From the archive:  Just so you know, this article is more than 3 years old.

skills_card_forger_jailed

Warwickshire City Council Trading Standards brought the prosecution against Andrew Weeks, 53, after he was found producing the fake cards at his printing company Nuneaton Print and selling them online for up to £30.99 each.

Forged documents included cards for the Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS), the Construction Plant Competence Scheme (CPCS) and the Electrotechnical Certification Scheme (ECS).

Other fake documentation included occupational health cards, driving licences, qualification certificates for first aid, and City & Guilds certificates.

A Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) investigating officer was able to purchase a CPCS card from Weeks without providing evidence that he was trained to operate machines such as dumper trucks and excavators.

Solicitors acting for the construction industry served a cease and desist order, which Weeks signed agreeing to stop producing the counterfeit documents. However, he changed his company's name to Yorkshire Novelty Print and continued trading.

Warwickshire trading standards officers then launched their own investigation and raided Weeks' business premises.

Weeks pleaded guilty to one offence under s 9 of the Fraud Act 2006 at an earlier hearing and was sentenced at Warwick Crown Court to three years and eight months imprisonment. He claimed in his defense that the "novelty item" disclaimer sent out with his products made his actions "acceptable".

His Honour Judge Barry Berlin said that producing counterfeit licences and qualification certifications had serious ramifications for public safety and described Weeks' actions as "fraud to foster more fraud".

He was also sued by CSCS for copyright infringement and ordered to pay damages of £6,000.

The names of those who had purchased fake documents from Weeks are now in the hands of the certificate awarding organisations.

Warwickshire County Councillor Andy Crump, portfolio holder for community safety, said: "Mr Weeks has committed an incredibly serious offence that could mean that hundreds of people across the UK are employed in jobs and trades that they are unqualified to undertake and in some cases, particularly in construction, electrical installation and caring professions may be putting lives at risk, not to mention those who may be driving on our roads today with fake licences."

Ian Sidney, fraud manager at CITB, added: "The use of fake cards could easily lead to accidents, injuries or even fatalities where contractors do not have the required skills, training or qualifications. Employers must remain vigilant when checking workers' documentation and keep an eye out for any suspicious activity."

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 Judges throw out property developer’s gross negligence manslaughter appeal

Thursday 8th November 2018
Lawyers for Andrew William Winterton, the construction site manager and director of Conquest Homes, told the Court of Appeal that the case against him was so weak it should never have gone to trial.But Lady Justice Macur and two other judges sitting at the Court of Appeal in London dismissed his challenge on 6 November.
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 Contractor dry swept asbestos dust in football pitch-sized floor

Wednesday 7th November 2018
Y Construction was refurbishing parts of Rose Lane Business Centre in Norwich, including a former kitchen and canteen, when the exposure took place. The firm had started work in late April 2015 and various work continued into until early November 2015. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) found that it was during the latter months that workers were significantly exposed.The workers were non-English speakers with limited understanding of the language, knew little about the asbestos on the site and had received no asbestos awareness training.
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 Singapore High Court hands down first jail sentence under 2011 safety law change

Monday 5th November 2018
The foreman was sentenced to 25 weeks in jail on 2 November after a High Court judge said that the courts’ existing practice of handing out only fines to those who committed safety breaches should be reviewed.
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 ‘Deceitful’ builder first to be fined under NZ’s new asbestos regulations

Wednesday 14th November 2018
Richard John Knight was prosecuted under ss 206(1)(a), (b) and 3(a) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015, and the Health and Safety at Work (Asbestos) Regulations 2016 at Christchurch District Court and fined NZ$3,000 (£1,562).New Zealand OSH regulator WorkSafe found that, as well as working without a Class A removal licence – which ensures a competent person is engaged to carry out the work –  Knight had also failed to obtain the required certification for the work he completed.
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 Government bans combustible cladding and permits LAs to strip materials from private towers

Friday 30th November 2018
Housing secretary James Brokenshire made the announcement in Parliament yesterday (29 November), when the regulations were laid to give legal effect to the ban made public earlier this year.The use of combustible materials is now prohibited on the external walls of tower blocks taller than 18 m, as well as new hospitals, residential care homes, dormitories in boarding schools and student accommodation over 18 m.
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 Southern Gas Network fined £1.2m after gas main ignited

Friday 9th November 2018
A team of Southern Gas Network (SGN) engineers were called to the Estuary View Business Park on 27 May 2016 to repair a leaking gas main. The gas caught alight at around 10pm, resulting in an explosion and fire. Gary Norris was badly burned on his face, arms and legs and Adrian Hennigan sustained cuts and bruises. The cause of the ignition remains unknown.
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