Compensation Bill: Lords overruled

Prosecutions and Claims |
01.07.2006

The government is amending the Compensation Bill to make sure compensation is available to mesothelioma victims. Ministers have moved fast to overturn the law lords' ruling that mesothelioma payments from businesses who exposed employees to asbestos should be scaled down where the sufferer was exposed by several employers (see HSW June, page 3). The ruling was expected to make claims against former employers much harder to pursue as many would have gone out of business by the time their ex-employees are diagnosed with the disease.