In a news release on 25th February, the Government announced that it will not, after all, back the efforts of Andrew Dismore MP to alter the law and make symptomless pleural plaques compensatable.  The Rothwell case will therefore remain good law. This is good news for insurers. Those who are exposed to asbestos but suffer no ill effects apart from symptomless changes in their lungs have not suffered an injury that deserves compensation, and must now wait until they develop physical symptoms before they can seek an award of damages from a defendant.

It will be seen that the Government favours "streamlining" mesothelioma claims with a view to speeding up the payment of damages. The current procedures in the High Court already result in summary judgment at an early stage of most mesothelioma claims, so the only possibility of streamlining such claims might be to put pressure on defendants to investigate claims more speedily at a pre-litigation stage. The creation of the proposed Employers Liability Tracing Office might, we hope, assist not only claimants who are trying to identify the correct insurer, but also defendants who wish to seek a contribution from other culpable parties.