A mesothelioma campaign group is urging the government to ban Altrad UK, its parent company and its subsidiaries from future public-sector work.
Its call followed the decision by Altrad UK chief executive Ran Oren (pictured) not to appear before the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Occupational Safety and Health.
The APPG said it will examine the asbestos-related legacy of Altrad subsidiary Cape Intermediate Holdings “and other Cape companies” in a two-hour session next Monday (24 March).
A spokesperson for the Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum (AVSGF) UK told Construction News: “We feel it is highly disrespectful of Ran Oren to decline to attend the parliamentary hearing on the legacy of Cape asbestos products. It is unbelievable to us that he should treat such eminent parliamentarians in such a disgraceful way.”
The spokesperson called for the APPG “to recommend in clear terms to the government that neither Altrad/Cape nor its parent nor any of their subsidiaries should be awarded any further contracts by government departments”.
Experts appearing in front of the APPG will include medical expert Dr Robin Rudd, mesothelioma research specialist professor Peter Szlosarek and ex-HSE inspector Christopher Chambers.
Peter Gartside, a former director of Cape’s overseas industrial services business, will give evidence, as will representatives of AVSGF UK.
But “despite requests for attendance, Ran Oren has declined to attend”, the APPG said in a statement.
Companies House lists Oren as director of Altrad UK, Cape Intermediate Holdings and another subsidiary, Altrad Belle.
French construction equipment group Altrad bought Cape Intermediate Holdings for more than £300m in 2017.
All types of asbestos have been banned in the UK since November 1999, but more than 5,000 people are still dying from asbestos-related diseases annually.
In a previous video appearance before the APPG last year, Gartside said: “Cape closed its last asbestos-based product manufacturing facility in the late 1980s having introduced asbestos-free alternatives to all of its products.”
But according to AVSGF UK, Cape had downplayed the risks of working with its products and lobbied ministers to weaken exposure limits. The campaign group has demanded that Cape or Altrad donate £10m to fund medical research to find a cure for mesothelioma, which is caused by inhaling asbestos dust.
Construction News understands that Altrad offered a donation of more than £1m but this was rejected by the support group.
In 2023 Altrad set aside £118m to deal with a string of historical allegations linked to asbestos exposure. At the time, the firm said that it “continues to receive claims” from insurance companies and individuals over historic alleged exposure to asbestos.
APPG chair Ian Lavery MP said: “Asbestos continues to cause devastating harm to workers and their families. The role of Cape, who knew the dangers of its products and tried to cover its crimes, must be exposed.
“This hearing [next Monday] provides an opportunity to hear from experts and victims, and to consider the necessary steps to protect future generations.”
AVSGF UK chair David Ellis said: “For far too long, victims of asbestos exposure have been ignored, and the companies responsible have evaded proper accountability, covering up the role they played in putting many thousands of people at risk.
“More than 400 people a month are diagnosed with these fatal cancers – companies like Cape made huge profits at the expense of their lives. Cape’s products were used in many buildings, including shops, hospitals and schools and continue to cause fatal illness to the thousands of people exposed to them.”
A coalition of unions iin 2023 called for the removal of asbestos from all public buildings within the next 40 years, following a similar demand from the Work and Pensions Committee the year before.
The HSE estimated in 2022 that 310,000 non-domestic buildings may still contain some form of asbestos.
CN approached Altrad and Cape Intermediate Holdings to comment.
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Greg Pitcher