Urgent Action Demanded Over Pleural Plaques

Top personal injury lawyers have welcomed a pledge by prime minister Gordon Brown to produce a consultation paper on the plight of victims of pleural plaques, an injury caused by exposure to asbestos. In October last year the highest court in the UK, the House of Lords, announced that it would not overturn a ruling of the Court of Appeal in January 2006, which now prevents sufferers of pleural plaques from claiming compensation.

The Court of Appeal's ruling reversed over 20 years of established practice, during which time sufferers of pleural plaques had been able to claim compensation for the condition. Gordon Brown's announcement of a consultation came during prime minister's questions time earlier this month.

Roger Maddocks, industrial disease specialist at law firm Irwin Mitchell, said the consultation was 'good news after a continual onslaught by insurers to deny innocent victims of asbestos exposure compensation for injury caused by their employer's negligence.'

He added: 'I represent many families who will be devastated by their diagnosis. Pleural plaques are physical scars, often a cause of great anxiety and at times a precursor to very serious, and sometimes fatal, disease.'

At the same time, a panel of experts convened by construction union UCATT has advised MPs the government should overturn the Law Lords decision blocking compensation for pleural plaque sufferers.

Top medical and legal experts addressed a 26 March seminar held in the House of Commons to brief MPs.

Asbestos disease expert Professor Mark Britton told MPs most people were diagnosed with pleural plaques by accident, when they were x-rayed for other diseases. He also emphasised the debilitating mental affects of the disease.

He said: 'People's whole quality of life disintegrates and it leaves mental casualties.' Matthew Cartledge, a senior partner with trade union lawyers OH Parsons, said it was 'just plain wrong' that overturning the Law Lords ruling would be difficult for government. He also said it was essential that pleural plaque sufferers should be able to claim provisional damages and be able to identify the company and insurers who were liable - something only likely to happen at the moment after sufferers go on to develop potentially fatal asbestos cancers.

MP Michael Clapham, who chaired the meeting, said 'it is important to keep up the pressure.
This place does not move without pressure.' UCATT has distributed 100,000 campaign postcards, to be sent directly to justice minister Jack Straw, urging him to overturn the Law Lords decision.

Source: TUC Risks


 
 
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