Oral question asked in the House of Lords, by Lord Rotherwick (Conservative). It was answered on Tuesday, 27 October 2009.

Aviation: Air Quality

Question: My Lords, is the Minister aware that Professor Helen Muir, who is responsible for the research of the Cranfield project, said last year in a magazine called Flight International that such fume events have occurred in the research? She goes on to mention, ""a wide range of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds including benzene"," and finishes by saying, "including organophosphates". We know that organophosphates are extremely dangerous; Gulf War syndrome is one example of that, and we have seen shepherds affected by dipping their sheep. So why are the Government dithering when the health of tens of thousands of people is continually being affected by these events on commercial airlines?

Answer: The noble Lord, Lord Rotherwick, almost answered his own question by referring to the work that Professor Helen Muir is undertaking at Cranfield. She is an experienced and well respected expert on aviation safety. The examination being conducted there is being done with the co-operation of airlines. It is the only work of its sort that is being conducted in the world, and that work is well over half-completed; we expect to get the findings next year. We do not yet have conclusive evidence that there are organophosphates that are harmful to health, but if that turns out to be the case then action will be taken straight away.

Secondary information

Type: Oral question
Reference: 713 c1099
Session: 2008-09
Oral question type: Supplementary
Chamber / Committee: House of Lords chamber
Subjects: Air pollution Aircraft Contamination Pollution control Air conditioning
Link: View this Oral question on www.publications.parliament.uk