§ 45. Mr. Hastingsasked the Prime Minister whether, in view of the anxiety felt by many, he will publish a monthly report giving details of radioactive fallout and radioactivity of representative samples of milk and vegetables of areas in which observations are being made.
§ 46. Mr. Masonasked the Prime Minister if, in view of the anxiety felt by many medical officers of health about the growing radioactive contamination of milk and vegetables, he will advise the Medical Research Council to issue a monthly report of the results of the monitoring work in this country.
§ The Prime Minister (Mr. Harold Macmillan)The level of radio-activity in milk, vegetables and other foodstuffs is now being continuously investigated under the direction of the Medical Research Council and the Agricultural Research Council. The situation over the country as a whole or in any particular area does not change detectably from month to month and only an annual review of the collected data can give a reliable assessment of the situation. To 565 publish isolated monthly data for particular samples would tend to mislead rather than help. Any significant change in the situation would be reported to me as soon as it became known.
§ Mr. HastingsIs the Prime Minister aware that there are temporary changes in different areas at varying times, and that for a time, in the case of the Wind-scale disaster, there was a great increase in radioactivity over London? Is he also aware—I am sure he is—that milk and vegetables are especially valuable foods for children, who are most affected by the danger of radioactivity, that parents are really very anxious and that regular information would put them at their ease?
§ The Prime MinisterOf course, there are these occasional situations, but I am informed that it would really be much better to stick to what we have done, which is the periodical publication of this data, instead of month by month, which would be misleading and not helpful. On the other hand, I hope that the next report will be published by about the middle of this year.
§ Mr. MasonBut surely the Prime Minister cannot deny that there is a definite, steady increase taking place in radioactive contamination by strontium 90 in plants, milk and certain vegetables, and would it not be at least advisable that, even privately, he should circularise in every quarter the medical officers of health so that these can be certain in their own minds of this trend?
§ The Prime MinisterI do not think it is anything of this character. It would be better to await the report, which will be published in a month or two.