VICTIMS of an asbestos-linked cancer are to receive lump sum compensation payments from the Government.
For the first time Government compensation will be made to victims who simply lived near sites where asbestos was used.
The decision was warmly welcomed by a Leeds MP who with the Yorkshire Evening Post has campaigned for state compensation on be
half of hundreds of his constituents affected by the activities of a local asbestos factory.
The J W Roberts asbestos factory at Armley in west Leeds continues to claim lives almost 50 years after its closure.
Many have died from mesothelioma, an incurable cancer of the lung. Death usually occurs with 12 to 18 months of diagnosis.
The Government compensation scheme for mesothelioma victims, which is expected to come into effect early next year, was announced by the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions John Hutton.
Currently only people who contract the disease from exposure to asbestos at work are eligible to claim a lump sum from the state. The proposals will provide up-front financial support to people who were previously not eligible, including those who were exposed to asbestos from a relative and people who lived near factories using asbestos.
Payments
The cost of the compensation will be recovered from firms and insurers. In the first year of the scheme payments of around £4,000 a person are expected, but this figure will increase as the "pot" of money claimed by the Government from employers and insurers grows. Civil settlements usually involve compensation of around £100,000.
Leeds West Labour MP John Battle said: "It is very good news that the Government has committed today to speed up compensation for sufferers of mesothelioma.
"In Armley in my constituency I have campaigned for compensation for over 20 years, while corporate gamesmanship has resulted in many people being left with practically nothing but suffering the terrible affects of this disease
