Peter, Lord Hendy of Richmond Hill

[whole diary]

[Electric train]

Both Nigel and Richard know better than most of us,let's see what comes of Thursdays next edition
Nigel especially knows Gareth of old having had him as a regular contributor when he was at the helm of Rail.

One of there key messages in their podcast was "if you want / need to whistle blow, then do it through the correct channels, as this will prevent you getting the sack"

[TaplowGreen]

Both Nigel and Richard know better than most of us,let's see what comes of Thursdays next edition
Nigel especially knows Gareth of old having had him as a regular contributor when he was at the helm of Rail.

One of there key messages in their podcast was "if you want / need to whistle blow, then do it through the correct channels, as this will prevent you getting the sack"

Nobody should ever be disciplined, let alone sacked for highlighting safety issues irrespective of what channel they use, and safety issues certainly still exist at Euston.

Hendy/Network Rail could have addressed his comments calmly and openly, God knows they have enough PR^▸ (Public Relations) people to get a message across.

I think most people can recognise a bully when they see one.

If you prefer a compliant partisan to a critical friend in any environment, sooner or later it may well come back to haunt you.

[JayMac]

One of there key messages in their podcast was "if you want / need to whistle blow, then do it through the correct channels, as this will prevent you upsetting someone who can misuse their power and influence to threaten your employer by not awarding them future contracts unless they dismiss you."

Fixed that for you.

If the guy concerned breached company policies then that's a matter entirely between employer and employee. Peter Hendy shouldn't have stuck his oar in.

[Electric train]

One of there key messages in their podcast was "if you want / need to whistle blow, then do it through the correct channels, as this will prevent you upsetting someone who can misuse their power and influence to threaten your employer by not awarding them future contracts unless they dismiss you."

Fixed that for you.

If the guy concerned breached company policies then that's a matter entirely between employer and employee. Peter Hendy shouldn't have stuck his oar in.

Peter Hendy from what was commented in the podcast not ask for the individual to be sacked, Hendy did, according to the podcast, say they (Network Rail) in a letter to Systra could cease using Systra as a supplier.

There are a number of confidential reporting lines regarding safety concerns in the rail industry, all of which are widely known within the industry.

 

[Mark A]

Walking past Peter Hendy's old gaff the other day, I was thinking: did he sign up to the Coffeeshop?

Mark

[PrestburyRoad]

Members of the professional engineering institutions have committed to obey their institution's code of conduct.  Purely as an example here is a link to the code of conduct for the Institution of Mechanical Engineers https://www.imeche.org/news/news-article/code_of_conduct_for_members.aspx.

I haven't checked which of the various people mentioned in this thread are members of professional engineering institutions, nor have I assessed whether their behaviours have been in accordance with the codes.

[Western Pathfinder]

Not that I'm aware of Mark,though he has been known,to read the odd post which has been linked to him by yours truly.

[IndustryInsider]

There are a number of confidential reporting lines regarding safety concerns in the rail industry, all of which are widely known within the industry.

Indeed, with CIRAS^▸ (Confidential Incident Reporting and Analysis System) probably being the most well known and trusted:

https://www.ciras.org.uk/

[eightonedee]

Peter Hendy from what was commented in the podcast not ask for the individual to be sacked, Hendy did, according to the podcast, say they (Network Rail) in a letter to Systra could cease using Systra as a supplier.

.

..and this is one of the objectional aspects of his behaviour. I had not heard of Systra until this story broke, so looked them up on line. It is clear that Systra UK^▸ (United Kingdom) is a substantial consultancy, but that UK rail projects are a major (possibly the majority) of the business. It would have placed Systra's management in an invidious position - fire Gareth Dennis or lose you business. It is clearly cheaper for them to risk an unfair dismissal claim that prejudice their business.

Add to this the fact that this is a safety related matter. NR^» (Network Rail - home page) seem to make much of the fact that they got a sign off from ORR^» (Office of Rail and Road formerly Office of Rail Regulation - about) in response to an improvement notice (although if you read the letter from John Larkinson of ORR to Iain Stewart, it says there are still 6 Improvement Notices "open" - unclear if these also relate to Euston or it's the total nationally). Notwithstanding, there are still complaints being made by passengers about feeling unsafe at times at the station.

Peter Hendy is now a minister, who has safety obligations. We have seen the publication of the Grenfell report this week. All the many parties involved in the cladding work seem to have obtained necessary consents and approvals for the work they did. The authorities ignored tenants' expressions of concern. This has understandably been severely criticised. But we now have a newly-appointed minister who seems to use commercial threats to stifle comments on safety issues. Surely this is unacceptable?

[WSW Frome]

There is a major article in the Daily Telegraph today detailing Lord Hendy's extensive and varied family history and career. Although written from a Telegraph perspective it does not make comfortable reading but very enlightening.
I cannot provide a link and normal access routes arrive at the paywall. I found it through the Google news feeds which provided the full article unembargoed. Recommended reading. 

[bradshaw]

Retired engineer David Shirres has engaged with Dennis on the Green Signallers podcast. It makes interesting reading.
https://x.com/davidshirres/status/1832604096852832382?s=61&t=VlafMC5gF9tidw36b1Y8JQ

Meanwhile the RIA has issued a statement which has headed another thread by Dennis
https://x.com/garethdennis/status/1833186645580882099?s=61&t=VlafMC5gF9tidw36b1Y8JQ

[JayMac]

London TravelWatch are now saying that overcrowding at Euston is puttimg passengers in danger.

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/crm2eglg020o

What threats can Peter Hendy make against LTW for highlighting this issue? Who will he demand be sacked this time?

[ChrisB]

Yeah, they just had to stick their oar in. funny that the crowding has got no worse since the pandemic, but this is the first time since then that they choose to put out a press release. Funny that.

[JayMac]

What is funny about the timing of the LTW press release ChrisB?

Being dismissive of safety concerns, no matter who raises them, isn't wise in my opinion. Safety should never wait for an "I told you so" moment.

Office of Rail and Road, a respected rail engineer, and now a passenger watchdog, have all raised concerns over public safety at Euston.

I hope you're not on the wrong side of history, ChrisB.