Written question asked by Owen Paterson (Conservative) on Tuesday, 25 May 2004, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Tuesday, 15 June 2004. It was answered by Jane Kennedy (Labour) on Tuesday, 15 June 2004 on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions.

Dept for Work and Pensions

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the tonnage of materials containing white asbestos in use by the farming industry; and what the total costs of disposal would be at current prices. - Inc figures.

Answer: Mr. Paterson: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the tonnage of materials containing white asbestos in use by the farming industry; and what the total costs of disposal would be at current prices. [176644] Jane Kennedy: Asbestos is present on a large proportion of farms in the form of asbestos cement sheeting. Much, though not all, of this material contains white asbestos. There is no requirement under the new duty to manage asbestos in non-domestic premises regulation to remove or dispose of asbestos-containing material if it is in good condition. HSE advice is that in this case it is safer to leave it in place and manage it. The Regulatory Impact Assessment for the new regulation estimated the total cost of compliance for agricultural buildings at a present value of £180 million over the 50 years, 2000-50. There are approximately 163,540 agricultural premises in Great Britain. The cost of disposal was not estimated separately.

Secondary information