COMPENSATION for victims of an asbestos-related condition, including former Plymouth dockyard workers, would involve 'significant' amounts of public cash, the Government has warned.

Justice Secretary Jack Straw told the Labour Party conference he acknowledged the difficulties and distress faced by sufferers of pleural plaques – a scarring of the lungs caused by breathing in asbestos fibres – but refused to make promises that could not be kept.

He made his remarks after unions at the Manchester gathering stepped up their campaign for the Government to overturn a controversial Law Lords ruling, following a legal challenge by insurers, that pleural plaques victims were not eligible for compensation.

Plymouth is a hotspot for asbestos-related deaths, many of the deceased being former workers at Devonport Dockyard.

Building workers' union Ucatt said construction employees, and others suffering from pleural plaques, would lose out as a result of the legal decision, which the union said would save the insurance industry £1.4 billion.

They warned the Government was at odds with the Scottish Parliament, which has introduced a bill to reverse the judgement.

Ucatt said a postcode lottery could be created, with Scottish victims of pleural plaques receiving full compensation.

For two decades, the proven existence of pleural plaques could itself attract modest compensation, but last year the Law Lords decided the condition, which can be a forerunner of asbestosis and mesothelioma, was not itself a disease, and so damages could not be claimed.

A government consultation to determine its response to the ruling ends at the start of next month. The consultation paper asks 'whether changing the law of negligence would or would not be appropriate and seeks views on the merits of offering no-fault financial support to people diagnosed with pleural plaques, and on possible ways of doing this'.

Tackled on the subject in a question-and-answer session, Mr Straw said a compensation package would involve 'significant' amounts of taxpayers' money.

"This is an incredibly difficult issue. One thing I'm not going to do, because it's not fair on people, is to hold out the prospect... of things which are going to happen when they may very well not happen," he said.

"I understand the distress this is causing but it's complicated and the potential charge against the public purse is also very significant. We have got to balance all those factors."

Labour MP for Plymouth Devonport Alison Seabeck said afterwards: "There's a significant number of people in Plymouth who are affected by pleural plaques and for whom a compensation package would make a difference.

"However, government does need to understand the full scale of the problem nationally before it makes any commitment in this area, because clearly there would be costs involved.

"I'm hopeful a way can be found which will satisfy the concerns of the people who are currently deeply worried about their future because of the nature of their condition."