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To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the health and environmental impacts of brominated and organophosphate flame retardants used in upholstered furniture; and whether they intend to update the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 to reduce reliance on such chemicals.
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the health and environmental impacts of brominated and organophosphate flame retardants used in upholstered furniture; and whether they intend to update the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 to reduce reliance on such chemicals.
The Environment Agency has just published a flame retardant scoping review, which identifies flame retardant substances that are present on, or relevant to the GB market, including brominated and organophosphate flame retardants used in upholstered furniture. The review carried out a preliminary assessment of their potential impacts on the environment and an initial screen for human health effects (when exposed via the environment).
As set out in the policy paper, ‘The fire safety of domestic upholstered furniture’, published on 22 January 2025, the Government plans to reform the Furniture and Furnishings (Fire) (Safety) Regulations 1988 to maintain a high level of fire safety while facilitating a reduction in the use of chemical flame retardants.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has (a) analysed and (b) commissioned research on the potential long-term health impacts of organophosphate exposure on agricultural workers since 2014.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether his Department has (a) analysed and (b) commissioned research on the potential long-term health impacts of organophosphate exposure on agricultural workers since 2014.
The Government commissioned a considerable amount of research to investigate whether there is a link between the use of organophosphate sheep dips and chronic ill-health. The outcome of this research was provided to the independent Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment who have published two statements in 2009 and 2014.
The independent scientific advice is that the research evidence does not support a link between the use of sheep dips and chronic ill-health. Therefore, it would be unlikely that further public inquiry would reach a different conclusion, making it difficult to justify committing public funds to an inquiry.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to review the potential impact oforganophosphate exposure on occupational health outcomes in agricultural workers.
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department plans to review the potential impact oforganophosphate exposure on occupational health outcomes in agricultural workers.
The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) is the enforcing authority for workplace health and safety on farms. The potential impact of organophosphate exposure on occupational health outcomes in agricultural workers, taking account of occupational exposure risk and current state of knowledge, is the basis for industry specific guidance in relation to organophosphate exposure and sheep dipping.
This information is published in HSE Agricultural Information Sheet AIS41 (Sheep dipping: Advice for farmers and others involved in dipping sheep) and is freely available to download from the HSE website.
HSE has no plans to carry out a further review at this time.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he had made of the potential impact of organophosphate exposure from sheep dip on the health of (a) farmers and (b) agricultural workers.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he had made of the potential impact of organophosphate exposure from sheep dip on the health of (a) farmers and (b) agricultural workers.
The Government has commissioned a considerable amount of research to investigate whether there is a link between the use of organophosphate sheep dips and chronic ill-health. The outcome of this research was provided to the independent Committee on Toxicity of Chemicals in Food, Consumer Products and the Environment who have published two statements in 2009 and 2014. The independent scientific advice is that the research evidence does not support a link between the use of sheep dips and chronic ill-health. |
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing compensation to people affected by exposure to organophosphates in sheep dip.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the potential merits of providing compensation to people affected by exposure to organophosphates in sheep dip.
Whilst the Government is sympathetic to those who are ill, the Government is neutral on the issue of compensation claims between those who believe that their health has been affected by exposure to organophosphates and the manufacturers of those products.
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the National Archives file 'Organophosphate poisoning to farmers caused by sheep dip' (PIN 21/843) is open in its entirety and, if not, for what reasons any redactions have been made.
To ask His Majesty's Government whether the National Archives file 'Organophosphate poisoning to farmers caused by sheep dip' (PIN 21/843) is open in its entirety and, if not, for what reasons any redactions have been made.
When The National Archives identifies information in an ‘open’ record which engages, or is likely to engage, an exemption under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, the record in question has its access status amended to ‘Access Under Review’, which temporarily prevents the record from being orderable by members of the public.
Officials at The National Archives can confirm that the record (PIN 21/843) will revert to being orderable again shortly once the appropriate assessment of its status under the Freedom of Information Act has been carried out.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research is being conducted on the effect of organophosphates on people that operate sheep dips.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what research is being conducted on the effect of organophosphates on people that operate sheep dips.
The Government recognises that organophosphates are potentially dangerous substances, and that their use needs to be carefully controlled in order to minimise the risks to people who work with them. Government policy is, and always has been, based on the best independent scientific advice. It is Government practice to regularly review all controls in line with the latest scientific advice, and to carry out research to provide more information when required.
The 1999 report from the Government’s independent advisory Committee on Toxicity (COT), entitled ‘Organophosphates’, concluded by making recommendations for further scientific research in the form of five questions. Subsequently, the Government committed £4.1 million funding to answer these and other research questions, exploring whether the use of sheep dips was the cause of the chronic ill health reported by some sheep farmers. The outcome of this research was provided to the COT for its work in preparation for the March 2014 statement.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with Guy's hospital poisons unit on organophosphates in sheep dips.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with Guy's hospital poisons unit on organophosphates in sheep dips.
In January 2017, Government officials met with representatives from Guy’s and St Thomas’s Hospitals’ Toxicology Department to discuss how patients who participated in various studies conducted there in the early 1990s could access their test results.
During this meeting the extent of data relating to these studies that is still held was clarified, and several options for patients to gain access to their medical records were discussed. In concluding the meeting, officials agreed to produce very clear and concise instructions for how this could be done at minimal cost and share them with the group of patients concerned.
The above action was completed a few weeks later at the beginning of February 2017. Since that time there have been no further meetings with the hospital, but officials have been in occasional communication with staff in the Toxicology Department in response to feedback from some patients.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans the Government has to limit the use of glyphosate by farmers.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans the Government has to limit the use of glyphosate by farmers.
The Government has no plans to limit the currently authorised uses of glyphosate. Like all pesticides, glyphosate is subject to restrictions to ensure that its use will not harm people or have unacceptable effects on the environment. UK experts agree with the recent assessment of the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) that the use of glyphosate does not raise safety concerns.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will estimate the number of farmers that have reported illnesses relating to exposure to organophosphate sheep dips since 1990.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will estimate the number of farmers that have reported illnesses relating to exposure to organophosphate sheep dips since 1990.
The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) has recorded the number of reports of suspected adverse reactions in humans to OP dips received each year since records began in 1985. To date this figure is 634. To the best of the VMD’s knowledge this is most comprehensive dataset available.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to publicise better the 2014 findings of the Committee on Toxicity as far as they relate to the health effects of exposure to organophosphates.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will take steps to publicise better the 2014 findings of the Committee on Toxicity as far as they relate to the health effects of exposure to organophosphates.
The 2014 findings of the COT review on the health effects of the exposure to organophosphates is in the public domain and can be found on the COT’s website: http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20140909095303/http:/cot.food.gov.uk/cotstatements/cotstatementsyrs/cotstatements2014/cotstatorg.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will meet the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group to discuss the effects of organophosphates.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will meet the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group to discuss the effects of organophosphates.
My hon. Friend will be aware that I met the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group about a year ago and discussed this issue in depth. The Committee on Toxicity has looked at this issue exhaustively, examining 26 different studies over a period of more than a decade, and concluded that in the absence of acute poisoning there would not be meaningful long-term effects.
To the best of my knowledge there is no new scientific evidence available that would alter this conclusion. I am sympathetic to farmers suffering from ill health but at this time I do not feel a further meeting would be beneficial.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish the minutes of the meeting in November 2015 between the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group and the Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if she will publish the minutes of the meeting in November 2015 between the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group and the Minister of State for Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.
A summary of the meeting I held on 19 November 2015 with the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group is publicly available on its web site:
http://www.sheepdipsufferers.uk/campaigning/Summary%20of%20meeting.pdf.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with the sheep dip sufferers support group on organophosphate poisoning.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with the sheep dip sufferers support group on organophosphate poisoning.
I met the Sheep Dip Sufferers Group in November last year. The concerns of the Sufferers Group were discussed in detail and we committed to providing information to the group, including the Government’s rationale for ending compulsory sheep dipping.
This information was provided to Tom Rigby (co-ordinator of the Sheep Dip Sufferers Group) in May of this year.
Thanks to the Minister, the sheep dip sufferers group now has access to documents including medical records from the poisons unit at Guy’s hospital, which show what many sufferers have known for years: there were long-term health impacts of using sheep dip. Will he meet us again so that we can act for those who still suffer?
Thanks to the Minister, the sheep dip sufferers group now has access to documents including medical records from the poisons unit at Guy’s hospital, which show what many sufferers have known for years: there were long-term health impacts of using sheep dip. Will he meet us again so that we can act for those who still suffer?
The hon. Lady will be aware that I met her and others about a year ago, when we looked at this issue in depth. I subsequently went back through all the submissions that came from the chief veterinary officer in the early 1990s to establish precisely why we stopped using sheep dip, and it was not because of health concerns; it was because of a belief that it was not possible to tackle the disease. I note that she has now got the documents, but I simply say that the
committee on toxicity looked at this issue exhaustively, examining 26 different studies over a period of more than a decade, and concluded that in the absence of acute poisoning there would not be meaningful long-term effects.
The hon. Lady will be aware that I met her and others about a year ago, when we looked at this issue in depth. I subsequently went back through all the submissions that came from the chief veterinary officer in the early 1990s to establish precisely why we stopped using sheep dip, and it was not because of health concerns; it was because of a belief that it was not possible to tackle the disease. I note that she has now got the documents, but I simply say that the
committee on toxicity looked at this issue exhaustively, examining 26 different studies over a period of more than a decade, and concluded that in the absence of acute poisoning there would not be meaningful long-term effects.
The hon. Lady will be aware that I met her and others about a year ago, when we looked at this issue in depth. I subsequently went back through all the submissions that came from the chief veterinary officer in the early 1990s to establish precisely why we stopped using sheep dip, and it was not because of health concerns; it was because of a belief that it was not possible to tackle the disease. I note that she has now got the documents, but I simply say that the
committee on toxicity looked at this issue exhaustively, examining 26 different studies over a period of more than a decade, and concluded that in the absence of acute poisoning there would not be meaningful long-term effects.
Thanks to the Minister, the sheep dip sufferers group now has access to documents including medical records from the poisons unit at Guy’s hospital, which show what many sufferers have known for years: there were long-term health impacts of using sheep dip. Will he meet us again so that we can act for those who still suffer?
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the use in Florida of the organophosphate insecticide Naled, which is banned in the EU, what advice they are giving to British citizens intending to visit Florida; and what steps they are taking to place that advice on the Foreign and...
To ask Her Majesty’s Government, in the light of the use in Florida of the organophosphate insecticide Naled, which is banned in the EU, what advice they are giving to British citizens intending to visit Florida; and what steps they are taking to place that advice on the Foreign and...
The method of mosquito control in other countries is not a matter routinely covered by FCO travel advice. Currently, specific UK health travel advice for Florida and the wider US is supplied by the National Travel Health Network and Centre, to which the FCO website country pages have links.
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the group led by Tom Rigby can expect a response to their question about the advice that was received by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food from the Health and Safety Executive and the National Poisons Unit immediately prior to the end of...
To ask Her Majesty’s Government when the group led by Tom Rigby can expect a response to their question about the advice that was received by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food from the Health and Safety Executive and the National Poisons Unit immediately prior to the end of...
Defra officials have been investigating this issue since the meeting with the Sheep Dip Sufferers Group in November and sent information to Tom Rigby on 26 May.
The information follows up the actions from the meeting and includes news releases from MAFF and the Veterinary Products Committee (VPC) from 1992 and 1993. These explain why the decision was taken to end compulsory dipping, and the conclusions of the VPC reviews of organophosphate sheep dips at the time.
A note of agreed actions from the meeting was also provided.
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on the issues raised by the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group at the meeting of 19 November 2015 relating to (a) organophosphate sheep dip and (b) missing medical records from 1992; and...
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress her Department has made on the issues raised by the Sheep Dip Sufferers Support Group at the meeting of 19 November 2015 relating to (a) organophosphate sheep dip and (b) missing medical records from 1992; and...
Defra officials have been investigating this issue since the meeting in November and are in the process of finalising the information mentioned above for the Sheep Dip Sufferers Group. This is expected to be completed and released shortly.
The information will answer the actions from the meeting and include news releases from MAFF and the Veterinary Products Committee (VPC) from 1992 and 1993. These explain why the decision was taken to end compulsory dipping and the conclusions of the VPC reviews of organophosphate sheep dips at the time.
A note of agreed actions from the meeting will be provided along with the information above.