The TUC, meeting in Liverpool threw its weight behind a call from the pilots' union BALPA (British Airline Pilots' Association) for a North Sea oil and gas Safety Summit.

Earlier this year the Scottish TUC also backed the call and at the conference Scotland's First Minister pledged to give his support to such a summit.

'But we want the Secretary of State for Transport, Lord Adonis, to heed our call too,' BALPA delegate Reg Allen told the TUC.

The fatal crash of the Super Puma helicopter in the North Sea triggered the demand from BALPA that a Safety Summit, involving all those with a stake in North Sea operations, should be held to review all aspects of safety.

To head off BALPA's demand the oil and gas companies have set up a safety task force but BALPA does not believe this is enough. And it is too much about the industry looking in on itself.

Reg Allen told the TUC: 'There should be openness and transparency in all North Sea related activity and we should test all suggestions that purport to offer advantages.

'For instance the personal locator beacons that are being touted for all North Sea workers can actually make recovery more difficult and increase risk.

'We work in an increasingly competitive environment in the North Sea and that is why we need this Safety Summit.

'We need to look again at the North Sea safety regime and in particular at helicopter activity.'