Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Countess of Mar (Crossbench). It was answered on Monday, 28 April 2008.

Health: Organophosphates and Carbamates

Question: My Lords, I thank the Minister for that reply. Does he appreciate that it is now 16 years since the noble Lord, Lord Tyler, when he was in another place, and I started asking questions about sheep dip? Why do we rely entirely on British research in this country, when an enormous amount of research from the United States, Italy, Australia and New Zealand shows that low-level exposure to organophosphates causes ill health among sheep farmers and Gulf veterans? That was true also of Japanese people who were exposed to them during the recent terrorist attack. When will Her Majesty’s Government take their head out of the sand like the proverbial ostrich and deal with people’s ill health, rather than fencing so that they do not get involved in litigation? There are many sick people around who need help and attention but who are laughed at by the medical profession because nobody acknowledges that they are ill.

Answer: My Lords, nobody in government is laughing at people’s illnesses. In response to the first part of the noble Countess’s question, I say that I have been answering questions on this issue for 11 years, because it has been in front of the current Government as it was of the previous one. We are taking account of research not just in this country. Research projects are under way, as the noble Countess knows, but some of them will not come to fruition until later this year or early next year. For example, we already have a permanent British liaison officer, based in Washington DC, who is tasked with ensuring that the UK has full view of US research into Gulf veterans’ illnesses and providing a channel for communicating our own work to interested parties. The noble Countess referred to Australia. The Veterinary Medicines Directorate has assessed the Australian preliminary view of diazinon and concluded that the report contains nothing to suggest that diazinon sheep dips should be banned in the UK. The Veterinary Products Committee and its medical scientific panel have endorsed that assessment. However, as the noble Countess knows, research is ongoing. We have committed to a timescale for that of later this year and early next year.

Secondary information

Type: Oral question
Reference: 701 c2
Session: 2007-08
Oral question type: 1st Supplementary
Chamber / Committee: House of Lords chamber
Related items: Agriculture: Sheep Dips
Tuesday, 10 June 2008
Written questions
House of Lords; Health: Organophosphates
Wednesday, 14 May 2008
Written questions
House of Lords
Subjects: Health hazards Iraq-Kuwait conflict Farmers Research Sheep Gulf War syndrome Organophosphates Sheep dipping Veterans Pesticides Carbamates
Link: View this Oral question on www.publications.parliament.uk