§ Mr. Maddenasked the Secretary of State for Employment what decision has been reached by members of the Asbestos Advisory Committee, established to consider the dangers to health from asbestos, about the conduct of their inquiry.
§ Mr. John GrantThe Chairman of the Health and Safety Commission informs me that the Advisory Committee on Asbestos decided at its first meeting on
148W
Skillcentre (formerly Government Training Centre) Number of training places at 7th June 1976 Number of people awaiting training at 7th June 1976 Number of people who completed training under the training opportunities scheme during 1975 Number of people sponsored by their employers who completed courses in 1975 Cardiff (including Treforest and Tremorfa annexe) 450 320 491 75 Llanelli 175 106 219 16 Port Talbot 369 94 383 142 West Gwent 187 132 236 56 Wrexham 207 166 144 36 Newport 164 155 — — 1,552 973 1,473 325 23rd June that, in order to expedite progress, working groups should be set up to cover four main areas: medical aspects, environmental monitoring, legal and administrative controls, and the production and use of asbestos. These working groups will report back to the main Committee.
The Committee welcomes contributions and representations from interested parties, preferably by 31st August 1976. These should be sent to the Secretary, Advisory Committee on Asbestos, Health and Safety Executive, Baynards House, Chepstow Place, London W2 4TF.
The Committee has decided that its proceedings will not normally be open to the public. However, the Committee will provide opportunities for interested parties to make oral contributions on issues raised by the working groups which, it is felt, ought to be the subject of wider public debate. On some of these occasions the Committee believes that the degree of public interest may be such that it might be appropriate to open the proceedings to the public.