6th Westminster lecture of transport safety : There is no such thing as perfect safety in transport, but a life is a life, however you travel. Lecture given London, 5th December 1995.

This lecture given by the Co-Chairman of Eurotunnel addresses the need for parliamentary insistence on standards of approach to transport safety, regardless of transport mode. The variation in publicity given to accidents involving different modes of transport is described. Attitudes towards commercial road transport operators lie somewhere between our toleration of private road users and our demands for more safety on rail or in the air. The EU Common Transport Action Plan has called for an end to different standards of safety requirements for different modes of transport. The lecturer objects to the UK Government placing far more stringent safety provisions on the Channel Tunnel than are asked of ferry operators. The basic elements of Tunnel safety provision are outlined. The After Dinner Speech given by the Secretary for Transport is included. It concentrates of safety in the Channel Tunnel, ferries, trains and aviation.