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Gulf War: Veterans

I thank my noble friend for his intervention. As I said, we will always be sensitive to any information that comes forward. A report will be published on, we believe, 8 April. We will then see the extent to which it comments on the RAC and to which that improves our understanding. If it improves our understanding, we will act accordingly. Veterans experiencing ill health as a result of their service should rightly expect our support, and we remain committed to delivering it. Veterans have access to a range of support services, including the medical assessment programme that I mentioned, which has been used by 3,500 veterans. Data from that programme continue to support the results of previous research. Gulf veterans seen as part of the programme complain of symptoms similar to those complained of by the general veteran population. No unusual pattern of disease emerged, nor is there any evidence of unusual neurological or other disorders among Gulf veterans. The same high standards of medical care and treatment under the National Health Service is therefore appropriate for them, as it is for other veterans. One area where we are looking specifically at the needs of Gulf War veterans is rehabilitation. We have initiated specific research into rehabilitation therapies for those with persistent symptoms. This work is being conducted by Cardiff University and is expected to conclude in 2012. There is no doubt that very real progress has been made since 1997. I am pleased to say that our depth of knowledge about ill health reported by Gulf veterans is now much greater and our delivery is good. I touch on one or two of the comments that the noble Lord, Lord Luke, made. He felt that the RAC report was compelling. Much professional opinion does not regard it as quite so compelling, but we will have time to reflect on it in the light of whatever is published. He said that we are talking about fatalities. That is clearly a very important issue. Each year—the document is dated 31 March, though I am not sure when it is published, but shortly thereafter—we look at all the people who have served in the Gulf. We look at a sample of service personnel and a matched sample of the general population. The fatality rate among the two populations of service personnel—those who went to the Gulf and those who did not—is slightly less for those who have served in the Gulf. However, there is not a major statistical difference. The figures are substantially the same. The rate is, of course, significantly less than for the general population because service personnel are generally healthier. This study has not as yet led to any statistical conclusions on fatalities. We will repeat the study every year so that we can assure society that we believe that this information continues to be valid and true. The noble Lord spoke about costs. It is difficult to see how the Government would incur more costs because the essence of our reaction is to ask how much disablement has occurred. If we find a different relationship in this regard, that may of course change things, and we never close our minds to this; but the essence of our reaction is not what the label is but the extent to which the citizen cannot manage in their day-to-day life. That is what our system is based on. I hope that noble Lords will forgive me for speaking for so long. This is a very important issue and I assure noble Lords that we take it seriously. I thank noble Lords for their concerns and their representations on these matters, which affect people to whom we owe a great deal. I assure noble Lords and the people concerned that the Government remain committed to helping them. We await with anticipation the report of the Institute of Medicine. I assure all noble Lords that we will consider its findings carefully.