Gulf War Syndrome: Research (Hansard, 22 July 1997)

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, officials in the Ministry of Defence have held discussions with the authors of the paper, Professor Graham Rook and Dr. Alimuddin Zumla, concerning their hypothesis. Whenever we receive suggestions for additional research into subjects which could have a bearing on Gulf veterans' illnesses, our advice is always that the researchers should submit a formal proposal to the Medical Research Council. I understand that Professor Rook and Dr. Zumla intend to submit a proposal for work to test their hypothesis in due course; we therefore await the MRC's advice.

§ The Countess of Mar
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for that reply. Is he aware that in the medical records of a number of Gulf veterans, signed by medical officers and stamped with the unit stamp, appear the following vaccines: botulism vaccine (as opposed to botulinum serum); ebola; rabies; rabbit 1306 fever; hepatitis A and B; encephalitis 1 and 2; meningitis; and three vaccines variously described as anthrax—V1, V2 and biological? If those are anthrax, some of the men will have received five anthrax vaccinations within two days, along with whooping cough vaccine. Will the noble Lord either affirm that these vaccines were used on some of the men some of the time, or nail the lie once and for all? If they were used, will he inform the researchers?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Countess for giving me notice of part of her supplementary question. I must apologise for the length of the reply that it is appropriate for me to give.
The three vaccines used in the anti-biological warfare programme for British troops during the Gulf War were: anthrax; potassis as adjuvant to it; and plague. Troops were also given a number of routine vaccinations such as might be administered to travellers or health workers.
As to the specific diseases mentioned by the noble Countess, I am advised that no vaccines exist for three of these—lassa fever, ebola, and AIDS. Vaccines are available for Q fever, equine micro-encephalitis; rabbit fever (also called tularemia); and certain strains of botulinum toxin. So far as the department can ascertain, none of these vaccines was administered to British troops during the Gulf War.
However, in view of public concern about this issue, part of the forthcoming fact-finding work which is described in detail in the policy statement, Gulf Veterans' Illnesses: A New Beginning, published on 14th July, will examine the range of routine vaccines which may have been received by certain groups of service personnel deployed to the Gulf.
There were a very, very small number of British troops who were given a meningitis vaccine because of the special circumstances in which they found themselves. As I understand it, the numbers are in single figures.

§ Lord Campbell of Alloway
My Lords, I wonder whether the noble Lord can help me. Not knowing what a "cytokine balance" is, or a "Th 2 profile", but looking at the Question, is Gulf War syndrome due to that, whatever it is?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for his candour. I have not, unfortunately, the faintest idea what a lot of these terms represent. The position is that neither we, with our research programme, nor the Americans, with their much wider research programme, are yet in a position to understand how this syndrome was actually caused.

§ Lord Parry
My Lords, does the Minister accept that, difficult though the subject is, many of us in this House greatly admire the noble Countess, the Countess of Mar, for her persistence in her research and for her pursuit of the many causes of the problems? Can the Minister tell me and the House whether the veterans of the Gulf are having as much difficulty in obtaining their medical 1307 records from official sources as the members of the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association have found? I speak as a patron of the organisation.

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I am obliged to my noble friend for enabling me to take the opportunity also to compliment the noble Countess on her diligence and perspicacity in pursuing those matters. The country owes her a debt of gratitude. I am sure that she would accept that under the guidance of my honourable friend the Minister for the Armed Forces, the position of Gulf veterans has been transformed in many ways.
I draw my noble friend's attention to the 20-point programme recently produced by my honourable friend in the House of Commons. For the first time, Gulf veterans are involved in a committee studying the work being done on their behalf.

Earl Howe
My Lords, is the Minister aware that this is a matter on which we, from these Benches, wish to give the strongest possible support to the Government in their efforts to help Gulf War veterans? I appreciate that the MRC has yet to submit its advice on the question alluded to earlier. However, can the Minister add to the helpful paper issued by his department last week and say whether the symptoms complained of by some veterans actually correspond with the symptoms described in the article in The Lancet?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, it would be an act of folly for me to try to add to anything that appeared in The Lancet article or a paper produced by my department only a few days ago. However, I shall look into the noble Earl's question and see whether I can write to him on it.

§ Lord Winston
My Lords, perhaps I may help my noble friend. The article in The Lancet was merely a hypothesis. As one who has contributed to the hypothesis column, I know that quite often it is a way of floating ideas which need proof. It is still an open question, an important one, but at the moment it is merely an idea.

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I am much obliged to my noble friend.

§ The Countess of Mar
My Lords, while I accept that the paper was a hypothesis, will the Minister confirm that some of the research work into the hypothesis will be done at Porton Down? Will he also accept that, in the words of one of the Gulf War veterans, to put the research with Porton Down is to liken it to asking a murderer to prepare his own prosecution case?

§ Lord Gilbert
My Lords, I can confirm that some of the work is being done at Porton Down. However, I do not accept the language quoted by the noble Countess. For the first time, the Gulf veterans have the protection that one of their number at least will be on the committee supervising the research work that is being done. I do not think that the Government can do more than that.