National newspaper the Daily Mail has launched a campaign to strip asbestos from all public buildings in England and Wales after a new report found the country faces a ‘tsunami’ of deaths from exposure to the ‘hidden killer’.
Despite being banned in the UK since 1999, around 300,000 non-domestic buildings in the country are believed to contain asbestos, including almost 75% (21,500) of UK schools.
Asbestos is dangerous when it is damaged, with fibres released into the air that are hazardous to health when inhaled or ingested.
Over the past 40 years, as many as 10,000 UK school teachers, pupils and school staff have died of asbestos-related diseases, such as mesothelioma and asbestos-related lung cancer, caused by asbestos exposure in school buildings, an investigation by the Sunday Times found last year.
The latest report from the Joint Union Asbestos Committee (JUAC) believes this figure is likely to increase dramatically over the coming years.
“Hundreds of thousands of students and staff, exposed to asbestos in their schools since the mid-1990s, are predicted to die from mesothelioma,” said the JUAC’s What Is The Real Risk From Asbestos In Schools? report.
“The evidence in this report suggests that [asbestos] is likely to be a tsunami in the UK. Their deaths would be the consequence of ineffective asbestos regulations and a cost-cutting culture that wrongly implies ‘asbestos is safe so long as it is not disturbed’.”
Government policy in the UK has traditionally been to leave asbestos in place if it is in good condition and likely to remain undisturbed.
However, this approach has been criticised for failing to take into account that more schools and other public buildings are falling into disrepair and asbestos-containing materials deteriorate over time.
As a result, the Daily Mail announced the launch of its campaign, ‘Asbestos: Britain’s Hidden Killer’ on 20 October 2024, and is calling for asbestos to be removed from Britain’s public buildings, starting with schools and hospitals.
The British tabloid newspaper is also urging the government to create a national online database of every non-domestic property that contains asbestos, which it hopes will be used to start a programme to strip the material from buildings.
The campaign has been backed by Labour Prime Minister Keir Starmer, according to a report by the Mail.
“It’s a very important question for today,” said Starmer when asked for his thoughts on the campaign during a visit to a London Ambulance Service centre on Tuesday 21 October.
“Whatever we need to do to reduce that risk, we absolutely need to do. It’s an awful, awful killer, not just a killer, but the way in which it kills people is just dreadful,” he said.
Industrial Diseases Solicitors
At Larcomes, our specialist industrial disease solicitors have been acting for the victims of asbestos exposure and the related diseases for many years, obtaining much-needed compensation for sufferers and their families.
We are proud supporters of HASAG, a registered charity providing support, guidance and information to people with asbestos diseases.
If you would like to discuss your industrial disease claim with us, give us a call on 023 9244 8100 or click here to make an online enquiry.
Please note that this article is not intended as legal or professional advice. It is for general guidance only, and updates to the law may have changed since it was published.
