Written question asked by Mark Simmonds (Conservative) on Tuesday, 8 December 2009, in the House of Commons. It was due for an answer on Thursday, 10 December 2009. It was answered by Baroness Merron (Labour) on Tuesday, 15 December 2009 on behalf of the Department of Health.

Sunbeds: Research

Question: To ask the Secretary of State for Health what recent research his Department has (a) commissioned and (b) evaluated on the use of ultraviolet tanning equipment by minors; and if he will make a statement.

Answer: The Department has recently commissioned, through Cancer Research UK, two large face-to-face surveys of sunbed use in over 9,000 children aged 11 to 17 in England. The first of these established that 6 per cent. of 11 to 17-year-olds had used a sunbed. A letter detailing some of the findings was published in the British Medical Journal on 13 November 2009. Further information on sunbed use by children and young people can be found at:"www.comare.org.uk/documents/COMARE13thReport.pdf"

Secondary information