The Work and Pensions Committee report warned that asbestos is still the biggest cause of work-related deaths in the UK. That’s despite the fact that a ban on asbestos came into force more than two decades ago.
There were more than 5,000 asbestos-related deaths in 2019, from cancers such as mesothelioma.
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Many of the deaths relate to exposure 35 or more years ago. The MPs said exposure appears to be much lower for younger age groups. But it also warned that there is not enough data available to understand the current picture.
MPs called on the government and Health and Safety Executive (HSE) to commit to a time frame and strategy for removing asbestos.
“We support the recommendation for there to be an overall ‘plan’ developed by the government and HSE. But we urge caution over doing this without research and evidence around safe removal and disposal.”
Ruth Wilkinson, IOSH
They also recommended prioritising removal from the highest-risk settings, such as schools.
Inspection and enforcement
They also demanded adequate funding for HSE inspection and enforcement, which they said had declined in recent years. HSE issued 60% fewer asbestos enforcement notices annually between 2011-12 and 2018-19.
The HSE had also been slow to invest in research into the cost and benefits for safe asbestos removal, the committtee added.
Work and Pensions Committee chair Stephen Timms said: “The drive towards retrofitting of buildings to meet net-zero aspirations means the risk of asbestos exposure will only escalate in the coming decades. Falling back on regulations which devolve responsibility to individual building owners and maintenance managers will not be sufficient to protect people’s health.
“Setting a clear deadline of 40 years for the removal of asbestos from non-domestic buildings will help to focus minds.”
‘Lives depend on safe removal’
Responding to the report, the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) urged the government to “thoroughly consider” any plans for removing asbestos. It warned that “lives depend” on the same removal of asbestos.
Ruth Wilkinson, IOSH’s head of health and safety, said: “We support the recommendation for there to be an overall ‘plan’ developed by the government and HSE. But we urge caution over doing this without research and evidence around safe removal and disposal.
“Removing asbestos is something which is fraught with risks. Any decision to do so is something which cannot be taken lightly.”
She added that planning would need to go into protecting people and what happens to asbestos once it has been removed, including packaging, transportation and disposal.
