Negligent companies should pay the cost of NHS treatment for their injured employees, the government has suggested.

Launching a consultation document setting out circumstances under which employers could be billed for the treatment of injuries caused by negligence, health minister David Lammy says today that the move would encourage company bosses to reduce risks in the workplace.

The document, applicable to England and Wales, was backed by the TUC, which welcomed plans to "make the perpetrator pay".

Lammy suggested that any extra income raised for the health service would go straight into the budgets of frontline hospitals.

The CBI said higher insurance costs could hurt some businesses.