Asbestos in school buildings - letter in the Times.

[sunnygirl1412]

In the Times today there is a letter from a consultant Thoracic surgeon and an MP about the Government's continuing refusal to assess the risk posed by deteriorating asbestos in school buildings or to carry out a national audit of the amount of asbestos in schools.
Times Asbestos Letter

At a recent meeting of the Asbestos sub-committee, it was announced that the Schools minister had again refused the committee's request to reinstate a campaign to improve asbestos management in schools - at the same time, ironically, as the committee chair announced that it is planned to close the Palace of Westminster, relocate the MPs and remove the deteriorating asbestos there - as if there seems to be one rule for MPs and another for our children.

The letter further calls on the Government to carry out a national audit of the asbestos content and condition in schools and the associated risks, as well as dedicating fundso for research into mesothelioma (the aggressive cancer that can be caused by exposure to asbestos fibres) and research into asbestos-related disease etc.

Mumsnet is a group with a big voice and I believe we should use it in this case - I had no idea of this problem nor of the Government's refusal to assess the extent of it until I read this letter, which is why I am posting this thread - not to alarm or panic people, but because we need to mobilise public opinion - and for that, the public needs to know what's happening.

Of course, it may be that the risk is very low, and there isn't a huge amount of dangerous asbestos in schools - but I firmly believe that parents have the right to know this.

Any suggestions as to what we could do about this would be great.

sunnygirl.

bump

frightening!

hmm, interesting post, amicissima

we have an asbestos issue at my work, but it will cost in excess of £30,000 to remove, money our school dosen't have

I also wondered about the asbestos being bonded, if this rendered it 'safe'

would that apply to artex (do i mean artex) that stuff they used to use on ceilings?

As far as I'm aware (no expert on this) asbestos is fine if you leave it alone. It's only when the walls/ceiling/whatever are damaged that you need to worry.

Lurker, I was told there was asbestos in our ceiling after dh had sanded it down to get rid of the patterns. We should have had it skimmed, apparently. He wore a dust mask.

It's all very well to bitch about people bringing lawsuits in the US but in this country, people with cancer caused by exposure to asbestos have been treated very badly indeed by the courts.

Yes, but your post gave a misleading impression that litigation about asbestos was just a bunch of people trying to make a fast buck. Maybe in the States but in this country victims and their families have suffered and been treated with extraordinary cruelty. It's shameful, it really is. Couldn't let your post stand without pointing that out.

The part about this story that worried me, amicissima, is the Government's refusal to perform an audit of the amount of asbestos in schools, and its condition. If such a survey was done, and could show that the vast majority of asbestos in our schools was the safe kinds of asbestos, it would put minds at rest.

Unfortunately my opinion of politicians is that they do their best to duck difficult issues, so the very fact that they don't want to perform the audit makes me worry that there's something that they're trying to hide. This may be just my natural cynicism, but I'd prefer to have accurate information rather than watching politicians duck the issue of asbestos in schools at the same time as they are making sure that THEIR working environment is asbestos-free.

sunnygirl.