Data produced by the Health and Safety Executive confirms that deaths from asbestosis (a form of pneumoconiosis caused by the inhalation of asbestos fibres) continue to increase in Great Britain, a legacy of heavy exposures to asbestos in the past.

It has been reported recently that more die from mesothelioma (a cancer associated with asbestos exposure) in Barking and Dagenham than almost anywhere else. Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that between 2010-14 there were 7.6 deaths per 100,000 people. This may be, in part at least, a reflection of the borough’s industrial past.

Millions of people were exposed to Asbestos at work from the 1930s to the 1970s as its use in the construction, shipbuilding and aircraft industries was widespread. Many employers knew about the dangers of Asbestos but did not adequately protect their employees, employees’ families or local residents from being exposed to Asbestos dust or fibres.

Asbestos was also commonly used in the UK from the end of the Second World War in 1945 until 1990s when it was banned.  It was used as lagging for pipes and boilers, as insulation for walls and ceilings and also in brake pads and clutches for motor vehicles to name but a few examples.