exclusive By Phil Coleman Chief reporter

Last updated 05:34, Friday, 01 August 2008

A TENANTS group and a trade union have called for a major health and safety investigation amid claims that up to 10,000 former council houses in Carlisle may contain asbestos.

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The fears came to light after joiners working for Carlisle Housing Association (CHA), which now owns the properties, refused to work on removing the material from homes. The association is due to hold a number of investigatory hearings today.

Housing chiefs this week clashed with officials of the construction union UCATT, which has a “zero tolerance” policy on asbestos.

The union says that only specialist companies trained in the safe handling of asbestos should work with it.

The Health & Safety Executive says CHA has not breached any asbestos guidelines, but there is growing concern that CHA tenants in the past may have inadvertently put themselves at risk by carrying out DIY on their homes, unaware that there may be asbestos present.

CHA has confirmed that residents wishing to work on their homes were not routinely warned of the danger – because asbestos safety regulations only covered the material in public buildings.

Carlisle MP Eric Martlew has called for an independent assessment of the potential risk posed by the material within CHA properties.

The Carlisle and Rural Tenants Federation issued a statement this week claiming that as many as 10,000 former council homes in Carlisle may have undetected asbestos.

Both the Federation and UCATT want an audit of all CHA homes to establish what asbestos is there whether or not there is a risk, particularly to tenants doing DIY.

John Scott, UCATT’s regional secretary covering Cumbria, said that his union was now so concerned about asbestos in CHA properties that it had asked its general secretary Alan Ritchie to investigate. He said: “We have a member in Carlisle who has highlighted the fact that asbestos is being pulled out of housing association houses there. CHA been given a clean bill of health by the HSE, but our view is that this material should be removed by specialist organisations.

“There should also be an audit of asbestos in CHA homes. If somebody decides to strip a ceiling or use a sander on a ceiling in one of these houses, they could be bringing this stuff down.

“There are tenants in houses where there is asbestos and they are not aware of it. But the legislation that covers identifying asbestos only applies to public buildings. So if you are going to work in a public building you can consult a register which will tell you exactly where the asbestos is and what kind of asbestos it is.

“I am speaking as somebody who has plural plaques, a condition caused by exposure to asbestos. As far as I am concerned, you could be bringing an early death for yourself if you mess with this material.”

In its statement, the Carlisle and Rural Tenants Federation said: “The finding of asbestos in those properties formerly belonging to Carlisle City Council is not only an issue for the CHA workforce, but must also be a major concern for anyone who lives in a former Carlisle City Council property, be they a CHA tenant or an owner occupier.

“There must be a large number of CHA properties that have not been examined. It is thought that close to 10,000 properties within the city council district may be at risk of having undetected asbestos.”

A spokeswoman for CHA confirmed that the procedures for its workmen to deal with asbestos had been approved by the HSE.

All tenants who wish to carry out work on their homes must first seek permission from the association, she said, and they would then be advised on how to proceed.

But she added: “In the past, we haven’t said to tenants that there may be asbestos in a property because this wasn’t in the guidelines produced by the HSE, which say it is only in non-domestic properties that you have to do that. So we were not obliged to under HSE regulations.”

However, Riverside, the company which owns CHA, is pursuing a national strategy of supplying tenants with a leaflet offering safety advice on asbestos in homes.

She added that asbestos was being removed from CHA’s properties on a rolling programme, while the association had also written to tenants to highlight the issue.

Eric Martlew said: “I think we need an independent medical opinion to clarify whether there is a danger here or not. If that shows there is a major risk to health, then we need urgent action. If there is not a risk, then people will be reassured.”