Debbie Abrahams
Main Page: Debbie Abrahams (Labour - Oldham East and Saddleworth)Department Debates - View all Debbie Abrahams's debates with the Ministry of Justice
(9 years, 6 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Mike Kane (Wythenshawe and Sale East) (Lab)
11. What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the compensation claims of mesothelioma sufferers are handled fairly.
Debbie Abrahams (Oldham East and Saddleworth) (Lab)
13. What steps his Department is taking to ensure that the compensation claims of mesothelioma sufferers are handled fairly.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Justice (Mr Shailesh Vara)
We continue to work with stakeholders to see how we can improve the claims process for these tragic cases.
Debbie Abrahams
The chair of the Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK has said that the Lord Chancellor’s plans for addressing the issues facing mesothelioma victims were
“rooted in a culture of secret deals with insurers and flawed consultations which excluded the victims of asbestos.”
Is it not time that the Lord Chancellor honoured the promise he made in the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 and stopped treating mesothelioma sufferers in this contemptible way?
Mr Vara
Clearly, the hon. Lady did not listen to what I said either. Let me be clear: we are talking about people who are suffering from a very horrific and tragic disease, and this Government are committed to ensuring that victims and sufferers have the best possible way of going through the process, particularly in getting compensation.
As far as insurance companies are concerned, the hon. Lady will be aware that when we had a consultation in July, the submissions by victims and groups such as the one she mentioned stated that they did not like the proposals that were angled towards insurance companies. We listened to those people and did not go ahead with the proposals that the insurance companies would have preferred. My right hon. Friend the Minister for Policing, Criminal Justice and Victims took through the Mesothelioma Bill earlier this year, which is of benefit to all the sufferers.