Chief Coroner: review the recommendations register

Press Release from the Office of the Chief Coroner

At a training conference in Christchurch last month, the Chief Coroner tabled for discussion and review the recommendations register which has been established pursuant to Section 7 of the Coroners Act 2006 “a register open for public inspection at all reasonable times of summaries of Coroner’s recommendations or comments”. The register is maintained on the Internet at:

http://www.justice.govt.nz/coroners/recommendations-register/default.asp

There are now 59 recommendations posted to that site. Recurring recommendations identified over the last 20 months are:

• Warning labels should be affixed to alcohol containers in the same way that cigarette packets contain health warnings on them.

• Greater efforts should be made to educate the public through public service campaigns about the very real danger of death from excessive consumption of alcohol.

• Greater efforts should be made to educate the public about the dangers of driving under the influence of cannabis.

• Four findings directly address the dangers of co-sleeping, where it was recommended that for the safety of infants, parents should use other means of ensuring a baby sleeps independently from his/her parents, whether it is in a cot, bassinet or wahakura.

• Two recent findings and one 1988 Coroners Act finding recommend that school buses should be more easily identifiable to other road users, through the compulsory fitting of flashing lights warning drivers that children are disembarking; and public awareness campaigns should be established that highlight the importance of school bus safety.

ENDS

© Scoop Media