Written question asked by Anne Snelgrove (Labour) on Monday, 30 October 2006, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Wednesday, 1 November 2006. It was answered by Derek Twigg (Labour) on Tuesday, 7 November 2006 on behalf of the Ministry of Defence.

Porton Down

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what assessment he has made of the health risk to residents of Swindon of Porton Down’s release of bacteria in the town in 1966; whether any other releases occurred between 1976 and 2006; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: During the Cold War era there was a very real threat of biological weapons being used against the UK. Therefore, the MOD commissioner a series of open-air defence studies to evaluate the vulnerability of the UK.The open air defence studies were undertaken in two phases. The first phase involved the open air release of harmless stimulant bacteria to assess dissemination characteristics. The second involved suspension of harmless simulants on individual micro-threads to determine their ability to survive in different climatic conditions.The only open air defence study undertaken in Swindon was in September 1966 and involved a series of micro-thread survival assessment studies. It did not involve the open air release of bacteria.Reports detailing these MOD Open Air Defence trials were released into the public domain in the mid 1990’s. Subsequently, following public concern, the MOD commissioned an independent expert to review the studies. This review concluded that"““…the releases of bacteria during the trials were very unlikely to have had health consequences for the overwhelming majority of individuals who were exposed…””."The full report can be located at http://www.mod.uk/DefenceInternet/AboutDefence/CorporatePublications/HealthandSafetyPublications/DefenceTrials/DorsetDefenceTrialsReport.htm.

Secondary information