The owners of a company that was one of the UK’s biggest manufacturers of asbestos have been accused of whitewashing their reputation by spending tens of millions of pounds on sponsoring the All Blacks rugby team while rejecting pleas for a £10m donation towards cancer research.
Altrad, the parent company of Cape Asbestos, has resisted calls from the Asbestos Victims Support Groups Forum UK (AVSGF) for a £10m contribution to mesothelioma research in light of its legacy, which the all-party parliamentary group (APPG) on occupational safety and health said involved “knowingly putting people in danger”.
But the company, which had revenue of €3.8bn (£3.3bn) in the last financial year, has spent up to a reported NZ$120m (£58m) on a six-year sponsorship deal that will emblazon its name on the New Zealand team’s shirts at this year’s Rugby World Cup.
Documents released after a court challenge by AVSGF showed that, in 1969, Cape’s group medical adviser said the fatal cancer could be caused by “short and possibly small” exposure and that “no type of asbestos proved innocent”. However, this was not reflected in “take care with asbestos” warnings placed on its products from 1976.
As such, AVSGF, with the support of the APPG, says Altrad has a “moral obligation” to help those affected.
Harminder Bains, a partner at Leigh Day solicitors, and whose father died of mesothelioma, said: “The barristers and I represented the AVSGF for over three and a half years, pro bono, in order to force Cape to disclose documents which revealed the extent of their persistent attempts to hide the dangers posed by their asbestos products which have led to many unnecessary deaths.
“Altrad is attempting to whitewash its public image by sponsoring the All Blacks, yet it is refusing to pay £10m towards medical research to find a cure for the cancer which Cape’s products caused.”
Although all asbestos has been banned in the UK since 1999 it continues to be the biggest occupational killer, with 2,268 deaths in 2021.
Last week, AVSGF wrote to Rishi Sunak asking for a moratorium on new public contracts being awarded to Altrad and its subsidiaries until it had met its “moral obligation”.
Rob Rayner, the chair of AVSGF, said Cape’s products were in many schools, hospitals and other public buildings “and so will continue to expose people to asbestos. Any agreement needs to be a gamechanger for mesothelioma research.”
Altrad’s deal with the All Blacks has already faced scrutiny because the company’s president and founder, Mohed Altrad, was found guilty of corruption last year, in connection with its sponsorship of the French national team. He was fined and given an 18-month suspended sentence.
A Cape spokesperson said: “Cape has been actively engaged with AVSG for many months and regrettably, despite offering significant sums towards medical research on mesothelioma, we were unable to find an acceptable agreement that balanced the interests of both parties.
“Our offer demonstrated our empathy towards those affected by historic asbestos use as well as our resolve to go above and beyond our legal responsibilities. Cape has already paid out over £100m in asbestos compensation and expects to pay at least £50m more in compensation to victims and families affected by Cape’s legacy involvement in the asbestos industry.”
