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More Than 1,000 Former Shipyard Workers Are Set to Benefit.
The change will reverse a recent House of Lords ruling
that limited the pay-outs to victims of the
asbestos related cancer mesothelioma.
More than 1,000 former
shipyard workers are set to benefit from a change in the law on asbestos
compensation, which was passed with the support of local Labour MSP Allan
Wilson in the Scottish Parliament today.
The change will reverse a recent House of Lords ruling that limited the
pay-outs to victims of the asbestos related cancer mesothelioma and their
relatives if they had been employed by more than one company.
Cunninghame North MSP Allan Wilson said that the House of Lords ruling was
unfair and meant workers and their families who were already suffering from
the effects of mesothelioma, lost large amounts of compensation through no
fault of their own.
Speaking about the new legislation, Allan Wilson MSP said:
“This has been personally one o the most satisfying pieces of Legislation I
have helped pass.
“I am extremely pleased that the Scottish Parliament has reversed the unfair
House of Lords ruling.
Parliament has acted quickly to help former workers suffering from this
terrible disease to receive the full compensation they are entitled as soon
as possible.
“I have six brothers in law all of whom worked in the shipyards and one of
whom has contracted the disease
so I had a personal as well as a professional interest in supporting this
Legislation.”
“ I am also aware of a dozen or so cases of mesothelioma in the Largs area a
number of whom are terminally ill having contracted the disease in
neighbouring shipyards so I am very pleased to have been able to assist them
and their families to access compensation they are entitled to during their
lifetime.
“I also welcome a further commitment by the Scottish Executive to bring an
additional bill before Parliament later this year which will make it easier
for the families of victims who have died to also claim their entitlement to
compensation.
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