By Kate Slaven, Mesothelioma UK Clinical Nurse Specialist
On Thursday 15 May at 12pm, we had the opportunity to meet with Charlotte Cane, MP for Ely and East Cambridgeshire at Unwrapped Green Café in Ely (Prospects Trust). The meeting was arranged following two separate initiatives – Paul Cowley, a mesothelioma patient, had engaged Charlotte during her canvassing rounds in March, and I had been reaching out to Cambridgeshire MPs by email.
Charlotte was the first Member of Parliament to offer a meeting, which we were pleased to accept. Paul and I agreed to meet jointly with Charlotte to raise awareness of mesothelioma, the work of Mesothelioma UK and the ongoing risks of asbestos exposure.
Charlotte was generous with her time and engaged fully in the discussion. We had prepared an agenda to guide the meeting, which included the following key points:
- The Need for a National Audit of Mesothelioma in the UK
Charlotte expressed surprise and disappointment on learning that there is currently no government funding in place for a national audit. We stressed how critical this data would be for understanding the true scale of the disease and any treatment disparities around the country.
- Delayed Financial Support from the DWP
We discussed the challenges faced by patients awaiting financial benefits, and the need for a more responsive and timely process from the Department for Work and Pensions.
- Mesothelioma UK’s Strategic Priorities
We shared with Charlotte the Mesothelioma UK Strategy for 2025, highlighting our focus on improving patient support, enhancing research, and sustaining the nursing workforce. The discussion included the valuable research undertaken at the Mesothelioma UK Research Centre at the University of Sheffield, as well as the challenges around funding clinical nurse specialists; the tour de force of the charity. We also introduced Charlotte to the national awareness campaign ‘Don’t Let the Dust Settle’, encouraging her to visit the Mesothelioma UK website for further details.
A significant portion of our conversation focused on the collaborative efforts between Mesothelioma UK and the Asbestos Information CIC, particularly in relation to education and raising public awareness about asbestos exposure. We discussed strategies for reducing risks, the need for a national asbestos database, and the importance of policy change. To illustrate the seriousness of the issue, we shared the Asbestos Risk Map, noting that within Charlotte’s own constituency, mesothelioma deaths are one to two times more likely than deaths from road accidents.
Charlotte commented: “Meeting Paul and Kate was a powerful reminder of the human cost of asbestos exposure. With cases rising and public buildings still posing a risk, it’s clear we need urgent action. I’ll be writing to the Minister to push for a national register and proper auditing—because protecting lives must be our priority.”
We are grateful to Charlotte for her time, attention, and willingness to listen. This meeting marked a positive step forward in our mission to improve outcomes for mesothelioma patients and raise awareness of the hidden dangers of asbestos. Charlotte expressed her willingness to take the message forward to the Houses of Parliament and hopes to organise a meeting with representatives from the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra).
