§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if he will now set up an inquiry into the risks to workers in the asbestos industry, and to the public, of asbestos-induced disease, such inquiry conducting public hearings with independent witnesses on oath calling independent witnesses on costs and risks, and making recommendations as soon as possible.
§ Mr. WaddingtonNo. The Health and Safety Commission's advisory committee on asbestos was established at the request of Ministers in 1976 precisely to review the risks arising from asbestos to persons exposed at work and to members of the public. It received evidence from a wide range of organisations and individuals and itself commissioned independent research. It reported in 1979, making far-reaching recommendations for new controls which the Government intend to implement alongside the two directives on asbestos currently under discussion in Europe.
One of the ACA's recommendations was that the HSC's advisory committee on toxic substances should 454W review the recommended control measures as further information becomes available. I believe that this is the right way to deal with any new evidence that might come to light since the ACA made its recommendations.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment how many complaints were made in each of the past five years for breaches of safety regulations concerning asbestos; how many prosecutions were initiated; and what penalties were imposed when firms were found guilty.
§ Mr. WaddingtonThe attached table shows the number of informations laid, convictions obtained and average fine per conviction for prosecutions taken by Her Majesty's Factory Inspectorate under the asbestos regulations 1969. The figures relate to hearings completed during the years 1976–80. Details for 1981 are not yet available. Information about the number of complaints made for breaches of safety regulations concerning asbestos are not readily available and could not be obtained without disproportionate cost.
Informations laid Convictions obtained Average fine per conviction obtained £ 1976 35 23 68 1977 90 84 195 1978 40 37 94 1979 12 7 54 1980 18 16 244
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment what steps he has taken to ascertain the risks of asbestos-induced disease to workers in the industry; and if he will tabulate in the Official Report his assessment of the rate of risk in each of the individual asbestos factories.
§ Mr. WaddingtonIn 1964 and 1968 respectively my Department established registers to record details of death certificates issued in Great Britain which cite asbestosis or mesothelioma as a main or contributory cause of death.
Following the passing of the asbestos regulations in 1969 a survey was established which offered to all workers in processes subject to the regulations the opportunity of biennial medical examinations and X-rays.
In addition, HM Factory Inspectorate embarked on a programme of air sampling, primarily designed to establish the level of compliance with the regulations, and has now collected some 19,000 personal half-shift job related sample results.
Responsibility for the registers, survey and sampling programme now rest with the Health and Safety Executive. Whilst it is not possible to give an assessment of risk in each asbestos factory, the extensive amount of information obtained from all this work allows the Health and Safety Executive to have available significant data on workers' exposure to asbestos
The Employment Medical Advisory Service of the Health and Safety Executive also keeps under review all new published epidemiological and other research concerning asbestos.
In 1976, with the agreement of Ministers, the Health and Safety Commission established a committee to review the risks to health arising from exposure to asbestos or products containing asbestos, including risks to persons exposed at work. The committee took into account 455W knowledge of the risks gained in other countries and reviewed all the epidemiological and other evidence available at that time. The findings and recommendations of the committee are contained in its reports published in 1979 entitled "Asbestos, Volumes 1 and 2; Final Report of the Advisory Committee".
One of the ACA's recommendations was that the HSC's advisory committee on toxic substances should review the recommended control measures as further information becomes available. I believe that this is the right way to deal with any new evidence which might come to light since the ACA made its recommendations.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment what is his estimate of the number of people who work with asbestos in Great Britain.
§ Mr. WaddingtonThe advisory committee on asbestos, at paragraphs 29 to 33 of its final report, estimated that the number of asbestos workers at any one time was unlikely to exceed 25,000. It is known that since the report there has been a decline in the work force to some extent.
§ Mr. Ashleyasked the Secretary of State for Employment if it is his policy to continue to prevent the reintroduction of blue asbestos into the United Kingdom.
§ Mr. WaddingtonYes.