Canada: Canada's opposition has blasted the national government for ignoring its own scientists' advice to stop mining and exporting the insulating material asbestos, one week before a major UN conference on dangerous products. New Democratic Party MPs also accused the Conservative government of blocking the UN listing of chrysotile asbestos as toxic so that it would be strictly regulated.
The MPs, backed by more than 200 scientists and health organisations from around the world that signed a letter urging the government to act, said that internal government emails revealed that Health Canada had pressed Ottawa to recognise the product mined in Quebec as dangerous.
New Democratic Party MP Pat Martin said, "It's appalling, it's a disgrace, it's an international shame and it gives a big black eye to Canada's boy-scout image around the world if we're dumping this carcinogen into unsuspecting developing nations." India, Indonesia and the Philippines, among others are major importers of Canadian asbestos.
Industry Minister Christian Paradis countered, saying that, "Canada has promoted the safe and secure use of chrysotile asbestos for 30 years both nationwide and internationally." He pointed to scientific reviews that found that it could be used under controlled conditions.
