An Indian consortium has offered to buy Jeffrey Mine, one of Canada’s last remaining asbestos mines.

The mine, in the town of Asbestos in Quebec, is currently under bankruptcy protection and work there is said to have stopped.

The offer is being considered by the current owners of the mine.

Canada has recently come under increased international pressure over its asbestos exports to developing countries. India is a key market for Canadian asbestos exports.

It is hugely disappointing that Canada continues to export asbestos, despite discouraging its use at home.

Anything that leads to an increase in asbestos exports to the developing world is a major cause for concern.

The recent ban on asbestos use in Commonwealth Games building projects in India shows that there may be a growing recognition of the dangers, but millions of tonnes of asbestos are still used around the world every year.