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The Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK (the Forum) the national organisation representing sufferers with asbestos related diseases, held a demonstration outside the Warrington offices of Cape/ALTRAD calling for a donation of £10 million to fund medical research to find a cure for mesothelioma, a cancer of the lining of the lung caused almost exclusively by asbestos. Despite a total ban on asbestos products in 1999, there were 2,544* deaths from mesothelioma in 2020 and asbestos related injuries are still the UK’s biggest workplace killer. This is due to a latency period between exposure and illness which is typically between 10 and 60 years. Cape’s refusal to voluntarily disclose their documents and to agree to the Forum’s demand that they be placed into the public domain, for public health reasons, continues to devastate lives Dressed as “Caped Defenders of Justice” the demonstration held on 30th September 2022 demanded Cape Intermediate Holdings Ltd pay £10million towards medical research to find a cure for mesothelioma after losing a major Supreme Court case forcing Cape to disclose substantial documents from their archives showing they had misled the government and other organisations as to the high risk of death and injury caused by their asbestos insulation board trade name Asbestolux.
The Forum welcomed the historic legal victory in which it played a key role and proved Cape intentionally withheld evidence on the risks of exposure to asbestos. Cape’s product Asbestolux, was used widely in many buildings including hospitals and schools. The Supreme Court granted access to documents which are now publicly available John Flanagan, Support Officer for the Merseyside Asbestos Victims Support Group (MAVS) said: “Our National Forum welcomes the historic legal victory which proved Cape intentionally withheld evidence on the risks of exposure to asbestos. Cape’s products like Asbestolux which is an asbestos insulation board, were used widely in many buildings including hospitals and schools. The Supreme Court granted access to documents which are now publicly available.” He added “Cape Intermediate Holdings played a central role in causing thousands of needless industrial deaths from the sale of asbestos products from which they profited.” Joanne Gordon, Chair of the Forum explained “Thanks to the Forum’s case against Cape Intermediate Holdings many victims who may have previously been denied compensation will have a greater chance of justice thanks to the evidence contained in documents now freely available. That’s a modern-day superhero story” She added “The campaign has received cross party support from 36 MP’s. However, the directors of Cape and parent company ALTRAD are yet to respond to several letters which set out our demands. Most notably, Ran Oren, CEO of Altrad, Lord Desai, a Labour peer in the House of Lords and former Labour MP for Gravesham, Chris Pond, both sit as directors of a Cape subsidiary called Cape Claims Services Ltd. Due to the lack of response, dressed as Caped defenders of justice, the Forum demonstrated outside Cape’s/ALTRAD Services’ headquarters based in Warrington. Whilst the £10million we demand does not compare to the vast profits Cape recorded as their employees were knowingly exposed to life-threatening asbestos fibres – it may well provide a lifeline to those who suffer from mesothelioma in the future” Source: MAVS / Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK
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