A union has expressed concerns over the coalition Government's
commitment to medical research for asbestos-related cancer
mesothelioma.
Ucatt said the previous government had promised to invest in
research into the condition with then Justice Secretary Jack Straw
pledging to create a National Centre for Asbestos Related Disease
(NCARD)
But the new government has proved elusive over the commitment,
the union says.
It comes after Labour MP Stephen Hepburn wrote to new Government
asking whether it would support the creation of NCARD and the
amount it would allocate for such research in the next three
years.
Health Minister Simon Burns avoided all mention of NCARD in his
reply, and said the National Institute for Health Research and the
Medical Research Council continued to welcome applications for
funding.
He wrote: "Future levels of expenditure on research into
asbestos-related diseases will be determined by the success of
relevant bids for funding."
Ucatt general secretary, Alan Ritchie, said: "The Government's
apparent failure to honour the commitment to fund NCARD is
sickening but not surprising. The fact that sufferers are
predominantly working class means they are not considered a
priority."
It is estimated that more than 2,000 people a year die from
mesothelioma and asbestos cases, making it the 12th most-common
killer of men, while it is rapidly increasing in women, the union
added.