UK: It has been claimed that victims of asbestos poisoning in the west of England have been 'betrayed' after the government quietly dumped plans for a compensation fund. According to the Union of Construction, Allied Trades and Technicians (UCATT), a proposal for a fund of up to Euro456m that was intended to help former workers who are unable to trace the employers that exposed them to asbestos dust has been dropped. UCATT also claims that a separate plan for a national research centre for mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases has also been abandoned. Both proposals were put forward in a consultation that finished in May 2010, but ministers have said nothing since.

Jim Kennedy, the political officer of the UCATT union of construction workers, said, "The Government is betraying people with mesothelioma. There is a deafening silence about this. Ministers won't formally say that this scheme has bitten the dust but we are confident it has." A Department for Work and Pensions spokeswoman has denied that the 'fund of last resort' had been scrapped.

Cancer-causing asbestos fibres were used extensively in the past in building and industrial insulation. The industry is still subject to frequent claims from workers with conditions that they claim to be caused by the material.

Ireland: On 11 August 2011 Kingspan Group plc said that it had raised USD200m from a private placement of loan notes, which it will use to pay down bank debt.

The company, which specialises in insulation and energy conservation, said that the notes carry a fixed interest rate of 5.25%. The placement, which was arranged by Royal Bank of Scotland plc, was oversubscribed and increased from USD125m to USD200m, according to Kingspan.

"(The placement) improves our capital structure by lengthening our debt maturity profile at very competitive interest rates and it affords Kingspan significant financing headroom as we seek to develop our business globally," said the group's finance director Geoff Doherty.

UK: The Department for Energy and Climate Change (DECC) has published figures that map the UK's performance in installing energy-saving residential insulation. In a local, council-by-council energy breakdown in conjunction with the Energy Saving Trust (EST), the department's figures showed that five of the country's worst performing local councils for installing home insulation were in London.

The London councils contrasted sharply with Kirklees, Yorkshire and Anglesey, Wales, which were revealed as the nation's top performing local authorities with 24.8% and 22.5% of their respective stock insulated. The largest number of insulation fittings that were carried out in 2010 were in Birmingham with a total of 12,079. Energy Secretary Chris Huhne said, "For those who haven't yet insulated their home, I'd really recommend them to pick up the phone, call the EST and check out the help available to cut bills."

Installing insulation forms part of the government's Carbon Emissions Reduction Target scheme and supplements schemes in the forthcoming Green Deal from 2012. As part of the initiative, fuel companies have been told by the coalition government to help homeowners improve their energy efficiency. British Gas, which has a 20% market share in UK gas supply, has recently announced a free insulation installation deal for its customers as part of the plans.

Finland: The Finnish expanded polystyrene (XPS) producer, ThermiSol, has acquired Finland's Suomen XPS in a deal funded by the state-owned company Finnish Industry Investment Ltd and the mutual insurance associations Fennia and its unit Fennia Retirement. Suomen XPS produces Novafoam XPS insulation materials and the acquisition is consistent with ThermiSol's strategy of expanding its product range.

The deal was agreed by the two companies on 1 August 2011 and ThermiSol will transfer machinery and production equipment from its factory in Pietarsaari to the Suomen XPS factory in Vimpeli between the autumn of 2011 and early 2012. According to the company this move will take advantage of the Vimpeli site's geographic location.

ThermiSol's Executive Director Urpo J Salimen said that the two companies had 'obvious synergies' and had come to a deal 'as quickly as possible.' ThermiSol, also an established producer of extruded polystyrene (EPS), had a turnover of Euro60m in 2010 and has interests in Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark. Turnover is expected to increase by nearly 17% in 2011 to Euro70m.