Asbestos has been one of the most discussed health topics of the last few decades. This is due to the fact that asbestos emits invisible fibres that can have harmful effects on anyone who comes into contact with them for prolonged periods.Research has shown that asbestos fibres are the catalyst for many diseases including Lung Cancer, Pleural Thickening and Mesothelioma. With this research in mind, and conclusive proof that asbestos kills, many governments from around the world have hastened to ban the usage of asbestos in any form. Many laws and legislations have been put in place to ensure that asbestos is not imported manufactured or used.

Like other governments from around the world, the UK government has taken steps to prohibit the usage of asbestos. Many laws have been passed for this purpose.

Below are some examples of the laws approved by the UK Government against the usage and import of asbestos into the country in any form.

- Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations (1983) - Asbestos (Prohibition) Laws (1999) - Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations (2002) - Control of Asbestos Regulations (2006)

The Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations were put in place in 1983. The key features of these regulations being:

- To insure that all asbestos related insulating work is carried out by licensed asbestos contractors. This clause was added in 1998

- The contractors need to file an application at least 14 days prior to the day work is to commence for approval. The law was amended to include this clause in 2003

- The contractors need to follow certain terms and conditions which must be in accordance with the approved code of practice

- The Asbestos (Licensing) Regulations was replaced by Control of Asbestos Regulation in 2006

The Asbestos (Prohibition) Laws were implemented in 1999 and have the following key features:

- This law was actually accepted in 1985 and banned the use and import of Blue Asbestos (Crocodilite) and Brown Asbestos (Amosite).

- In 1999, this law was modified to include the prohibited usage of White Asbestos (Chrysotile).

- In 2002 the import of White Asbestos (Chrysotile) was banned and included in the law.

- In 2006 this law was replaced by Control of Asbestos Regulations.

2002 saw the implementation of the Control of Asbestos at Work Regulations. The following points offer a general overview of these regulations:

- These regulations set a limit to the amount of asbestos a person may be exposed to - Conditions need to be completely controlled when work with asbestos is to take place. This was implemented in 1987 - The asbestos based materials in the construction need to be properly recognized - In 1993 it was made law to replace asbestos based materials whenever and wherever possible - In 2002 it was made necessary to properly manage and identify all asbestos related materials - In 2006 this law was replaced by The Control of Asbestos Regulations

The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2006 is the most recent and the most comprehensive collection of regulations approved by the UK government to date in their fight against asbestos related deaths.

Asbestos is something very dangerous and a lot of people are still unaware of that. Asbestos surveys need to be carried into buildings if it has not be done yet in order to identify if asbestos was used or not in the building.A recent survey carried out actually indicates that the highest risk of asbestos related lung illness in fact arises from insulation work in the United Kingdom. Epidemiologic work done by a professor called Peto has shown that in the first few years of the twenty first century we can keep on expecting a rise in the number of new cases of mesothelioma in Great Britain mainly due to asbestos. Mesotheliome really is a horrible cancer with a very long latency period.

In the United Kingdom, it presently causes more deaths than road traffic accidents and epidemiologists predict that a further one hundred thousand individuals would die from one type of asbestos cancer called mesothelioma in the coming years. When all types of asbestos-related diseases are gathered, the final death toll could be even higher than that previous number which is shocking.

Research into the treatment and care of this aggressive cancer in the United Kingdom is apparently in bad shape due to a lack of government help over the last years. In 2007 there was just one project dedicated to mesothelioma research funded by Cancer Research UK, but nothing by the Medical Research Council, despite the fact that between 1995 and 2004 the incidence rate of this disease in United Kingdom grew faster than any other cancer. Improvement have been made though with the availability of support for people suffering from mesothelioma by cancer charities throughout the United Kingdom. Any delay in diagnosing mesothelioma can impact negatively on treatment options, since an early diagnosis is a key to achieving a better cure for the patient. With the fact that patients are now getting older and are often diagnosed at a late stage of the disease. It becomes more and more urgent to use asbestos surveyors to carry out asbestos surveys. It seems that other countries like Australia have done things differently when it comes to deal with asbestos related diseases. The Australian government actually committed millions of pounds for a research program which would help people suffering from those diseases.

It is very easy to find a company specializing in asbestos management. They would usually also do legionella risk assessment and asbestos awareness training.