Workplace Exposure to Silica Dust

Debate between Rosena Allin-Khan and Liz Jarvis

Tuesday 2nd June 2026 Westminster Hall

[Dr Rosena Allin-Khan (in the Chair)]

I will call Liz Jarvis to move the motion, and I will then call the Minister to respond. I remind other Members that they may make a speech only with prior permission from the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister. As is the convention for 30-minute debates, there will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up.

[Liz Jarvis (Eastleigh) (LD)]

I beg to move,

That this House has considered silica dust exposure in the workplace.

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Dr Allin-Khan. I want to begin by paying tribute to my constituent Caroline Hudson and her sister Sandra, who are both here today. I thank them for their determination in bringing this issue to me and the wider public. None of us should underestimate how difficult it is to relive the loss of a loved one in public, but they are doing so because they do not want other families to suffer the same heartbreak.

Sandra’s husband, George Elliott, was a keen golfer, a proud Spurs fan and a man deeply loved by his family and friends. He was a highly skilled stonemason who worked on buildings including 10 Downing Street. George died in November 2023 from silicosis, a devastating lung disease caused by inhaling respirable crystalline silica dust. His family did not know that he had silicosis until his post-mortem. By then it was too late. Before his death, George suffered through severe breathing difficulties, constant exhaustion, oxygen dependency and the cruel deterioration that the disease inflicts upon its victims.

Silicosis is progressive and incurable. Tiny silica particles become embedded in the lungs, causing inflammation and permanent scarring. Over time, lung capacity is destroyed. Victims struggle to breathe, struggle to work and struggle to live normal lives. It also dramatically increases the risk of other serious illnesses, including tuberculosis, kidney disease, chronic bronchitis and lung cancer.

The key thing about silicosis is that it is preventable. The Health and Safety Executive estimates that around 600,000 workers in the UK are exposed to silica dust every year, yet for far too long the Government’s response has not matched the scale or seriousness of the threat. One of my uncles died from mesothelioma. We cannot let silica dust inhalation become another scandal on the scale of asbestos.

It is important to note that silicosis is increasingly affecting young workers—people in their 20s and 30s—and that the increase is largely due to engineered stone. The rise in the popularity of engineered stone has transformed modern kitchens, and these products are now everywhere, but many engineered stones contain extraordinarily high levels of silica—in some cases, up to 95%. When dry cut without proper controls, they release enormous quantities of deadly dust into the air.

The current system is leaving workers vulnerable. I welcome the recent steps the HSE has taken, following public concern and pressure from campaigners, clinicians and affected families. It has declared the dry cutting of engineered stone to be unacceptable, and introduced new guidance requiring water-suppression techniques, respiratory protective equipment and health surveillance, and a programme of more than 1,000 inspections across the UK.

However, there are concerns that the HSE’s current resources, enforcement powers and inspection capacity are not sufficient to deal with what could become a major national occupational health crisis. There is a fear that enforcement remains inconsistent, and that rogue operators continue to evade scrutiny altogether. Does the Minister believe the HSE has the capacity, staffing and resources necessary to effectively regulate the sector? If not, what additional support will be provided?

Australia has already prohibited engineered stone, following hundreds of silicosis cases among workers, and last week California took the first step in that direction. There should be absolute agreement on some fundamental principles: exposure limits must be rigorously enforced, proper personal protective equipment must be mandatory, workers must receive proper training, and health surveillance must become vastly more robust.

Australia’s national screening programme identified hundreds of cases that otherwise might not have been detected until the disease had progressed to a dangerous stage. Experts there found that one in four screened workers had silicosis. Why are we not introducing a targeted national screening programme here in the UK for workers in high-risk sectors, such as kitchen fitters, stonemasons and construction workers? There needs to be a large public awareness campaign for those potentially at risk and for NHS practitioners.

I would like to recognise the journalists who have been campaigning and raising awareness of this issue, including Joe Duggan at The i Paper, and the all-party parliamentary group for respiratory health. Recent analysis provided to senior NHS officials and reported by The i Paper suggests that more than 1,000 UK stonemasons could already have silicosis linked to exposure to engineered stone. The same report estimates that around 4,000 workers in the UK may be operating in informal or illegal parts of the industry, where basic safety protections are routinely ignored.

Silica safety should form part of compulsory training in construction, stonemasonry and apprenticeship schemes. Real-time dust-extraction systems should be properly explored and rolled out where appropriate. Occupational health records and GP systems should better identify workers exposed to silica, so that symptoms are not repeatedly missed or dismissed.

One of the most alarming aspects of this crisis is that we still do not know its true scale. It beggars belief that silicosis was removed from the official list of notifiable occupational diseases in 2013. As a result, cases are frequently hidden within broader categories such as lung cancer.

[Liz Jarvis]

I thank the hon. Member for his question and for all his work with the APPG. He is of course right: it is vital that we ensure that all workers have the proper protection.

Experts repeatedly warn that silicosis is being underdiagnosed and under-reported, so will the Minister consider how best to collect comprehensive national data on silicosis? Why are we not routinely publishing figures on diagnoses, deaths and occupational exposure? How can policymakers, clinicians and regulators properly respond to a growing occupational health crisis if we do not even have accurate national data?

The APPG for respiratory health and experts have argued that silicosis should once again become a notifiable disease. There are also calls for mandatory or greatly strengthened reporting through schemes such as SWORD —the surveillance of work-related and occupational respiratory disease. I hope the Minister will respond positively to these proposals today.

Early diagnosis matters enormously. Removing workers from exposure early can prevent disease progression in many cases. It can save lives and prevent long-term costs to the NHS. I know the Government have committed to increasing capacity in respiratory services and that the NHS has specialist centres for diagnosing and managing lung diseases such as silicosis. That is welcome, but we need to go further than treatment alone. Prevention must come first, with earlier detection, stronger enforcement and dramatically improved awareness.

I hope that, in the spirit of this debate, we can work on a cross-party basis to ensure stronger legal protections, earlier detection, and meaningful action before more lives are destroyed and more families suffer the heartbreak that George Elliott’s family have endured.

[Dr Rosena Allin-Khan (in the Chair)]

By prior agreement, Ian Lavery will now speak. There is sufficient time for him to have five minutes, if he would like.