Mesothelioma Legislation

A trade union in the UK is upset at the government, claiming that it dropped a compensation plan for asbestos victims.

According to the Northern Echo, consultation on a fund that would have provided £400 to people with asbestos-related diseases who are unable to pinpoint their exposure to the naturally occurring substance ended 15 months ago and still no word about the plan has been given by officials.

Jim Kennedy, the political officer with the UCATT union of construction workers, told the news source that the union believes that the asbestos compensation plan has been dropped.

"The government is betraying people with mesothelioma - there is a deafening silence about this," he said. "Ministers won't formally say that this scheme has bitten the dust, but we are confident it has."

Kennedy added that he felt the powerful insurance lobby was able to influence the current Coalition government into dropping the plan.

Many blue-collar workers suffer from asbestos diseases - which include mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis - as the substance was once widely used in many industries as an insulator and flame retardant.