Bangladesh factory safety accord has 'critical mass'

A group of 70 retailers have agreed a plan to conduct inspections of garment factories in Bangladesh in an attempt to improve safety standards.

They will provide details of factories they source goods from, which will be inspected within the next nine months.

Funds will then be made available for any safety upgrades needed at the units.

The legally-binding code was announced earlier this year after the collapse of a garment factory in Bangladesh in April killed more than 1,100 people.

Brian Kohler is the director of health, safety and sustainability at IndustriaLL, one of the main labour groups behind the Safety Accord that retailers have signed up to.

Speaking to the BBC, he said it was "regrettable" that some big names, such as Walmart, had not signed up to the accord - but that it still had the "critical mass" needed to make an impact.