A SAFETY chief has attacked construction firms for their "sheer complacency" in failing to provide more protection for their workers, following a new survey.

The industry has the worst safety record in the country - with 114 killed and 13,767 injured on construction sites last year - yet the survey carried out for the British Safety Council reveals that few bosses are looking to improve site safety.

Civil engineer David Ballard, director general of the British Safety Council, said: "The results show that construction firms are still putting safety way down their list of priorities, despite the industry's appalling record of site deaths and injuries. It is sheer complacency."

In its poll, the council interviewed more than 100 health and safety managers in the larger construction companies to see how they were preparing for the new corporate killing laws being proposed by the Home Office.

Under the new laws, companies will face unlimited fines for failing to take adequate safety precautions and directors will face up to life imprisonment if they fail to take proper care.

But despite the tough new legislation being proposed 67 per cent of those interviewed said they would be doing nothing, as they felt they were already well prepared.

Only seven per cent said they would be consulting the workforce, while just five per cent said they would be requiring suppliers to have a good safety track record.