Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the equalisation of payments made to people with asbestos-related diseases and their dependants under the Pneumoconiosis etc (Workers’ Compensation) Act 1979.
The 1979 Act and 2008 Act schemes were designed to pay those who suffer from eligible diseases at a higher rate than is paid to their dependents. It is right that available funding is prioritised where it is needed most, that is to people living with these diseases.