MINISTERS are expected to announce changes to compensation laws in Scotland later today to help asbestos-related cancer victims.
Yesterday, the Lord Chancellor, Lord Falconer of Thoroton, made it clear he intended to amend the law for England and Wales, to close a legal loophole which was preventing some sufferers from receiving full compensation.
Today the Scottish Execut
ive is expected to follow his example and pave the way for similar changes in Scotland, using the opportunity of a ministerial statement on the legislative programme to announce the initiative.
The controversy over mesothelioma, an incurable cancer affecting the lining of the lungs, linked to exposure to asbestos, erupted last month when law lords ruled that compensation should be cut for sufferers if responsibility for the disease could not be attached to a single employer.
The ruling meant that while sufferers who had worked for just one company could claim around £60,000 to £70,000, those who had worked for several employers would be able to claim just a fraction of that total - decided by dividing the amount by the number of companies worked for.
The Lord Chancellor has made it clear he intends to make sure sufferers can get full compensation, regardless of the number of employers involved, and the Scottish Executive is preparing to make the same changes for Scotland.
Des McNulty, a Labour MSP who has campaigned on behalf of asbestos victims for years, said he believed it was "inevitable" that similar changes would be introduced in Scotland. "I'm confident that the Executive is going to take this up and I'm absolutely delighted at this decision by the Lord Chancellor," he told BBC Radio Scotland.
"The fact that they're going to put into legislation that approach makes it almost essential and inevitable that it will quickly be followed here in Scotland," Mr McNulty said.
"So, this is tremendous news for asbestos victims and their families."
A spokesman for the Executive said that it had been considering this "sensitive, difficult and complex matter".
He added: "Asbestos groups have put forward a compelling case for change and we are looking to work with them to achieve an equitable solution.
"At this stage we cannot give a definitive view on legislation. However, there will be a statement in parliament tomorrow on the Scottish legislative programme."
Solicitor advocate Frank Maguire of legal firm Thompsons, which handles more than 90 per cent of asbestos cases in Scotland, said the government had shown a real commitment to sufferers.
"It is good news for mesothelioma sufferers in Scotland because it offers a quicker solution than the private member's bill under consideration in the Scottish Parliament," he said.
"Now we can simply ask the Scottish Parliament to ensure that the relevant part of the Compensation Bill applies in Scotland."
About 1,900 people die in the UK each year from the disease, a cancer of the lining of the lungs or abdomen which is almost always caused by exposure to asbestos and is thought to affect about 2,000 former Clyde shipyard workers.
The Lord Chancellor and the Work and Pensions Secretary, John Hutton, will amend the Compensation Bill - currently going through parliament, for England and Wales and the Scottish Executive will probably link Scotland up to the bill using a procedural Sewel motion.
However, Mr McNulty wants to go further than the UK government and correct another "anomaly" in damages law.
This leaves victims having to claim compensation while they are still alive or wait until they die and allow their families to claim a possibly greater amount.
Mr McNulty has already lodged a member's bill in the Scottish Parliament. However, he is hoping the proposed legislation will be taken up by the Executive, which would ensure it became law quickly.
He added: "I want to drive this into the legislative programme. I want the Executive to become involved and take this forward.
"People believe this is a moral issue and we need to do the right thing by these people."
Mesothelioma is fatal and the life expectancy of those who develop it is usually from six to 18 months.
The link between the inhalation of asbestos fibres and mesothelioma has been well established in medical circles and it takes only a single fibre of the substance to cause the disease.
However, asbestos can lie dormant in the body for many years before it causes any problems.
Clydebank has the highest death rate from asbestos poisoning in the UK, mostly due to its shipbuilding past.
20-year fight by worker grieving loss of his mother
ALEX Horne, 61, has been campaigning for 20 years on behalf of former factory workers at Golden Wonder's Broxburn plant in West Lothian.
His mother, who worked in the factory from 1973-83, died from lung cancer in March 2005.
She was one of more than 100 workers there who have died of respiratory-related diseases.
Insulation behind the factory's boilers was found to be heavily contaminated with asbestos.
Mr Horne worked as a handyman repairing asbestos cookers between 1983 to 1988.
He said: "I am fighting for my mum and for everyone in that factory.
"We were not offered any protective clothing and told to get on with it.
"We don't want compensation, we want good health for a long time.
"The stress on top of dealing with illness for friends and family trying to get compensation is not acceptable."
