Uproar In UK Over Proposed Changes To Asbestos Laws -- MesoLink.org -- 01-19-06

A number of safety campaigners, legal experts, and members of parliament have joined forces in the UK in order to express their concerns over proposed changes that have been put forward in relation to asbestos regulations. A consultation is currently being run with regards to the changes, and this is being carried out by the Health & Safety Commission (HSC).

It is thought that the consultation period will end at the end of January and that any proposed changes that are accepted will be enforced in April 2006. The proposed changes relate to the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations. Changes include amendments to control limits and to the fiber counting method and removal of some exemptions on employers using their own workers to perform asbestos work, among other changes.

Many members of parliament have signed a motion criticizing the changes and demanding more research. One proposal indicates that contractors without training or licensing would be allowed to remove textured coatings containing asbestos, which has caused particular concern among the opposition to the amendments.

The motion put forward and signed by the MPs states: "This House expresses concern that the new Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations 2006 will drop textured coatings from the list of materials that only licensed contractors are approved to remove; is further concerned that the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has arrived at this proposal without a proper evaluation of the risk associated with the material; believes that allowing unlicensed contractors to remove these materials will put workers, home owners and families at risk; and calls for the proposal and research methodology to be reviewed."