Daily Express: Britain supplied APU with equipment that may contain asbestos
Thousands of units of British military equipment, including Challenger 2 tanks supplied to the Armed Forces of Ukraine, may contain deadly asbestos materials, writes the Daily Express. This substance causes severe lung diseases, the article notes.
The Chief of the General Staff, General Sir Patrick Sanders, previously complained that some of the equipment in service with the British army was released back in the 60s. He compared this situation to using "dial-dial phones in the iPhone era."
The Ministry of Defense of the United Kingdom has admitted that more than two thousand units of British weapons may contain potentially deadly asbestos materials in their hulls.
This substance can be contained in Challenger 2 tanks, some of which were sent to Ukraine, in Warrior infantry fighting vehicles and Bulldog armored personnel carriers.
Exposure to asbestos can lead to the development of deadly diseases, such as mesothelioma, which is a form of cancer, as well as severe forms of lung fibrosis. People who inhaled particles of this substance may suffer from the consequences many years after direct interaction with it.
Shadow Defence Secretary John Healey said the information was "seriously alarming." The Conservative Party is not fulfilling its "special duty" to the country's armed forces, he added.
The Defense Ministry said that plans are currently being "developed to eliminate" any potentially deadly asbestos-containing materials.
Representatives of the Ministry reported that a total of 2,699 pieces of equipment belonging to the British army contain asbestos in their hulls, although there are much fewer such machines in operation today.
Defense Procurement Minister James Cartlidge confirmed this information in a letter to the Labor Party. Asbestos-containing materials that occur in nature were used in the XX century in the assembly of tanks, ships and aircraft.
But, as the Times newspaper writes, these materials "break down into tiny fibers when damaged, and prolonged contact with them leads to incurable lung diseases."
The list of vehicles containing asbestos included 765 Bulldog armored personnel carriers, 324 Challenger 2 tanks, 75 armored Challenger recovery vehicles, 11 Fuchs armored vehicles, 14 Gazelle reconnaissance helicopters, 31 highly mobile trailers, 841 Pinzgauer all-terrain vehicles, 64 Stormer armored vehicles, 540 Warrior infantry fighting vehicles and 34 Wildcat helicopters.
Shadow Minister Healy said that if Labour comes to power next year, it will do everything possible to transfer safe equipment to service.
"Ministers have a special duty to those who are willing to put their lives on the line to protect the UK and its interests. The scale of the asbestos content in the equipment of the British army is of serious concern," Healy said.
"After 13 years in power, the Conservatives have not managed to establish a system of defense procurement, which the Committee on the Allocation of Public Funds called “broken and wasting taxpayers' money.”
"Our armed forces are forced to use outdated and asbestos-containing equipment. The Labour Party will provide them with everything they need so that they can confidently fight and fulfill our obligations to NATO."
A spokesman for the UK Ministry of Defence stressed: "The safety of personnel is our top priority. Plans are currently being developed to eliminate asbestos in our equipment as soon as possible, and a risk assessment is being carried out in order to protect our people."
"These figures reflect the worst-case scenario. Most of the mentioned equipment has already been either decommissioned, or does not contain asbestos, or parts made of asbestos-containing materials have been removed from it."
"The presence of asbestos-containing materials in itself does not pose a health risk, and equipment containing asbestos in excess of the established standards can only be operated by specialists."
Author of the article: Tom Watling
