{"id":665767,"date":"2026-06-30T09:03:24","date_gmt":"2026-06-30T09:03:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/665767\/"},"modified":"2026-06-30T09:03:24","modified_gmt":"2026-06-30T09:03:24","slug":"killer-kitchen-dust-leaves-family-members-with-deadly-lung-disease","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/665767\/","title":{"rendered":"Killer kitchen dust leaves family members with deadly lung disease"},"content":{"rendered":"

Stonemasons who are members of the same family have contracted silicosis from cutting quartz kitchen worktops<\/a>, MPs have been told.<\/p>\n

Dr Jo Feary, the UK\u2019s leading respiratory consultant treating stonemasons battling the incurable lung disease<\/a>, called for a national screening programme of the workforce to detect cases early and improve survival chances.<\/p>\n

More than 50 quartz stonemasons, many in their twenties and thirties, have been diagnosed with silicosis<\/a> since mid-2023 from cutting the man-made stone, with four known to have died after inhaling its lethal high-silica dust<\/a>.<\/p>\n

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Man\u00a0in court\u00a0
charged\u00a0with attempted murder after\u00a0car\u00a0hits pedestrians<\/p>\n

A man has appeared in court charged with five counts of attempted murder after a car hit people on a busy London road before allegedly driving away.<\/p>\n

\"ACaption: A man has been charged with attempted murder after a car hit several people on a busy shopping street in west London.<\/p>\n

Five people were injured, with three taken to hospital, following the incident on Ealing Broadway at about 14:30 BST on Saturday. None of the injuries were believed to be life-threatening.
Copyright: Google<\/p>\n

What happened?<\/p>\n

Five people were injured, with three taken to hospital after the incident on Ealing Broadway, Ealing, west London, at about 2.30pm on Saturday. <\/p>\n

Counter Terrorism Policing (CTP) London conducted initial inquiries, but it is not being treated as terrorism.<\/p>\n

\"ACaption: A man has been charged with attempted murder after a car hit several people on a busy shopping street in west London.<\/p>\n

Five people were injured, with three taken to hospital, following the incident on Ealing Broadway at about 14:30 BST on Saturday. None of the injuries were believed to be life-threatening.
Copyright: Google<\/p>\n

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Analysis<\/p>\n

4 min read<\/p>\n

The additional charges<\/p>\n

Timir Ahmed Mohamed, 34, of Grange Park, Ealing, has also been charged with dangerous driving, failing to stop, failing to provide a specimen of breath for analysis and criminal damage.<\/p>\n

None of the injuries were life-threatening or life-changing.<\/p>\n

The two people who were not taken to hospital received treatment at the scene.<\/p>\n

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Big Read<\/p>\n

7 min read<\/p>\n

news<\/p>\n

British American Tobacco cuts 5,500 jobs in AI drive<\/p>\n

\"BritishBritish American Tobacco says it has safeguards to \u2018combat illicit trade\u2019 at a state-owned factory in Belarus (Photo: Luke MacGregor\/Bloomberg via Getty)<\/p>\n

The smoking products giant British American Tobacco (BAT) is cutting 9,000 jobs, including 3,500 which will be outsourced to partner companies, in a bid to save money.<\/p>\n

Overhaul will save hundreds of millions, say bosses<\/p>\n

The company, which makes Dunhill and Lucky Strike cigarettes, says the cuts are part of a necessary drive to save \u00a3600m by 2028, as part of its \u201cFit2Win\u201d policy strategy. <\/p>\n

The job losses, which have mostly already taken place, will be seen in the UK and elsewhere, but not in the US. <\/p>\n

\"BATH,Caption: BATH, UNITED KINGDOM \u2013 NOVEMBER 10: In this photo illustration, cigarettes are arranged on a table in a pub beer garden on November 10, 2024 in Bath, England. Plans to ban smoking in pub gardens has been dropped from government plans but plans to make it illegal to smoke in children\u2019s playgrounds and outside schools and hospitals are still being considered. However the main focus of the updated Tobacco and Vapes Bill to create a smoke free UK generation by making it illegal for anyone currently aged 15 or under to ever buy cigarettes will remain. (Photo by Matt Cardy\/Getty Images)
Photographer: Matt Cardy
Provider: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images Europe<\/p>\n

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OPINION<\/p>\n

2 min read<\/p>\n

Tech is making cuts possible<\/p>\n

We are building a future-ready organisation that is more agile, cost-disciplined and technology-enabled. These changes affect many of our colleagues, and we are focused on supporting them through this transition with care and respect, as we position the business for the future.<\/p>\n

Tadeu Marraco, chief executive of bat<\/p>\n

\"FILEHealth minister Jo Churchill has ordered Public Health England (PHE) to look into a series of cigarettes from Japan Tobacco International (Photo: Reuters)<\/p>\n

Watch more from The i Paper<\/p>\n

news<\/p>\n

How white working-class children are being \u2018failed\u2019 by education system<\/p>\n

\"SchoolMinisters insist special schools will always play a vital role for children with complex needs (Photo: 10\u2019000 Hours\/Getty)<\/p>\n

A new study has concluded that the education system is not set up to serve white working-class families, after children in this group were found to have some of the lowest learning outcomes. <\/p>\n

\nWhat did the study show?\n<\/p>\n

By the end of primary school\u2026<\/p>\n

43%<\/p>\n

of white children on free school meals (FSM) had the required reading, writing and maths skills, compared with 83 per cent of non-FSM children.<\/p>\n

The trend continues into secondary school.<\/p>\n

36%<\/p>\n

of white children on FSM achieved a Grade 4 or above in GCSE English and Maths, compared to 69 per cent of others. <\/p>\n

There are 1.25 million white children on FSM.<\/p>\n

What could be done to improve outcomes?<\/p>\n

\"Saving(Photo: Peter Dazeley\/Getty).<\/p>\n

Extending 30 hours of free childcare to all disadvantaged families who are not eligible.<\/p>\n

Making reading fluency a national priority for this group.<\/p>\n

Introducing free access to local public transport for all under-21s.<\/p>\n

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Big Read<\/p>\n

7 min read<\/p>\n

world<\/p>\n

All the latest updates as Venezuela earthquakes deaths rise<\/p>\n

\"RescuersRescuers in Tanaguarena neighbourhood (Photo: REUTERS\/Leonardo Fernandez Viloria)<\/p>\n

With fatalities now standing at almost 1,500, rescuers say they still haven\u2019t been able to go through all of the rubble after the double earthquake in Venezuela last week.<\/p>\n

More help needed, say rescuers<\/p>\n

With the crucial 72-hour window now past to find survivors, rescuers are still looking for tens of thousands of missing people. Almost 50,000 have still not been in touch with families since the quakes hit on Wednesday, meaning the final death toll is likely to be far greater than those found so far. <\/p>\n

Impromptu rescue teams have called on the Government to provide more heavy machinery to help with the search.<\/p>\n

\"FamiliesFamilies pick clothes at a shelter for the victims of an earthquake that struck Venezuela. (Picture: Jesus Vargas\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

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NEWS<\/p>\n

2 min read<\/p>\n

\nForeign teams bolster efforts\n<\/p>\n

Other countries have sent support teams to La Guiara, the hardest-hit city, where much of the city is reduced to piles of debris. Electricity in the region has now been restored to 75 per cent, says interim President Delcy Rodriguez.<\/p>\n

\"EDITORSRescuers pull a man from the rubble of a collapsed building in Catia La Mar, La Guaira, Venezuela on 26 June (Photo: Federico PARRA \/ AFP via Getty Images)
Photographer: FEDERICO PARRA
Provider: AFP via Getty Images
Source: AFP
Copyright: AFP or licensors
Taken on: 25\/06\/2026
Date loaded: 26\/06\/2026 at 20:20<\/p>\n

\"LACaption: LA GUAIRA, VENEZUELA \u2013 JUNE 26:Rescue teams continue searching the rubble of collapsed buildings for survivors following the devastating earthquake in Caraballeda, La Guaira, Venezula on June 26, 2026. The death toll in the back-to-back earthquakes that devastated Venezuela??s northern coast on Wednesday has risen to 235, with more than 4,300 others injured, Health Minister Carlos Alvarado confirmed Thursday. (Photo by Diko Betancourt\/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Photographer: Anadolu
Provider: Anadolu via Getty Images
Source: Anadolu<\/p>\n

More than 12,720 people have been displaced as a result of 774 buildings collapsing. The US Geolgoical Survey puts the likely death toll of the 7.2 and 7.5 magnitude quakes at around 10,000. <\/p>\n

Watch more from The i Paper<\/p>\n

@theipaper<\/a> <\/p>\n

Almost 1,500 people are dead four days after devastating earthquakes that struck Venezuela, according to the latest death toll. Authorities say they have treated more than 3,100 wounded people and have rescuers working through unstable rubble to reach trapped victims. One man searching for his missing relatives in La Guaira called for more support from the authorities. #venezuela<\/a> #earthquake<\/a> #worldnews<\/a><\/p>\n

\u266c original sound \u2013 The i Paper \u2013 The i Paper<\/a> <\/p>\n

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A roundtable of the All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Respiratory Health on silicosis heard that there had been a \u201cserial failing\u201d from UK authorities to protect quartz workers. One workplace safety expert claimed some UK stonemasons were being provided with less protection than Roman slaves.<\/p>\n

There were calls for the Government to intervene to prevent the global epidemic of cases seen in places such as Spain, California and Australia, with 6,000 cases in 12 countries detected so far.<\/p>\n

Dr Feary, who is treating 80 per cent of the UK\u2019s known cases, pointed to screening programmes in New Zealand and Australia \u2013 which banned quartz kitchen worktops in 2024 \u2013 showing between 12 and 29 per cent of tradespeople had silicosis.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, at least 10 per cent of any population of workers where they\u2019ve had screening have got disease,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve got absolutely no reason to think that the UK is any different.\u201d<\/p>\n

There are fears case numbers in the UK could be far higher than currently known with recent analysis warning more than 1,000 of the roughly 7,000 workers in the industry could have silicosis.<\/a><\/p>\n

Due to the lack of a national screening programme, Dr Feary\u2019s clinic at the Royal Brompton Hospital, has launched its own self-referral system.<\/p>\n

Of the 22 referrals seen at the clinic 78 per cent have been diagnosed with silicosis. . <\/p>\n

\u201cThese are people who have no access to health surveillance. Their exposure [to dust] is incredibly high.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey are a completely vulnerable population, and a high proportion of them, I suspect, will die from their disease.\u201d<\/p>\n

The youngest patient Dr Feary is treating is 23, one was diagnosed after just a year\u2019s exposure to quartz dust, and 29 per cent were exposed for less than 10 years. Sixty per cent are migrant workers.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have families where an uncle comes in with their nephew and both of them have silicosis because they\u2019ve worked together,\u201d said Dr Feary.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe get phone calls from wives, mums, and grandmas saying \u2018I\u2019m worried about my grandson, he\u2019s cutting that stuff\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n

She also called for better financial support for stonemasons forced out of their trade due to their diagnosis.<\/p>\n

Workers with silicosis can apply for Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit (IIDB), but unlike patients with asbestos-related cancers, they aren\u2019t currently fast-tracked<\/a> for the payments.<\/p>\n

Dr Feary said: \u201cI sit with men every week in tears, men in their forties and fifties, who say \u2018I don\u2019t know what else to do\u2019 with their partners.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn the UK, we can offer them nothing bar IIDB, which can take six months to come through if they\u2019re lucky, and pays for their travel to come to see me every six months.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Weaknesses in our system\u2019<\/p>\n

Last month, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) launched its most significant intervention so far into the engineered stone sector, unveiling its first regulatory guidance warning \u201cdry cutting\u201d without water suppression tools is banned while \u201cwet cutting\u201d was a legal requirement.<\/p>\n

As part of the crackdown, it has started a nationwide inspection campaign of 1,000 businesses cutting quartz.<\/p>\n

Of 11 businesses inspected so far, four have been issued with prohibition notices ordering them to stop working with engineered stone due to dry cutting.<\/p>\n

Kevin Bampton, chief executive of the British Occupational Hygiene Society, said the emergence of silicosis cases among engineered stone workers was \u201ca serial failure of everything\u201d.<\/p>\n

Bampton said: \u201cAll of these things were foreseeable. In 2020, the amount of engineered stone<\/a> coming into the UK went up by 70 per cent and the manufacturing base didn\u2019t, and so semi-finished blanks were available.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou could go to a DIY shop, you could buy them, so you could cut it yourself. We did get in touch with HSE and said \u2018this is coming\u2019. <\/p>\n

\u201cIt highlights the real weaknesses we have in our system that doctors, GPs don\u2019t get any occupational health training.\u201d<\/p>\n

HSE didn\u2019t mention artificial stone in its guidance until May 2024 so \u201cweren\u2019t really looking\u201d at the problem, he added.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Romans used to put RPE [respiratory protective equipment] on their slaves, because they didn\u2019t want the cost of losing slaves to respiratory problems,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cPeople should not be in business if they cannot look after basic health. I think we have to have a higher intolerance to the idea of businesses who say \u2018this is hard for small businesses.’\u201d<\/p>\n

He added that if Dr Feary were to leave the NHS \u201cwe\u2019ve lost our capability to deal with it in the UK\u201d and questioned why the Department of Health and Social care was not acting with more urgency.<\/p>\n

Mike Calcutt, deputy director in HSE\u2019s engagement and policy division, said, the workplace safety watchdog\u2019s immediate priority was preventing exposure to silica dust as quickly as possible, but didn\u2019t rule out a complete ban on quartz.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have proved through our research that exposure can be prevented by implementing the measures we\u2019ve got in place.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf evidence comes to light that it isn\u2019t or can\u2019t be, then obviously our options remain open.\u201d<\/p>\n

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