§ Mr. Hannamasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what research is being sponsored by her Department or otherwise into design of kitchen equipment which will provide greater safety to children from accidental scalding.
Mr. Alan WilliamsSafety in design is generally a matter for the relevant industry as a part of the normal research and development process. The emphasis of my Departments research into the safety of consumer products used in the home is on identifying hazards rather than designing equipment. Once the hazard is known, appropriate action can be taken to improve the safety of a product. We shall be producing a consultative document in the New Year to enable us to consider whether it is possible to improve the methods of dealing with safety of products.
§ Mr. Hannamasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what discussions she has had with manufacturers concerning the dangers to children arising from ill-designed or unstable kitchen equipment.
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Mr. Alan WilliamsAny hazard in a consumer product that comes to the attention of my Department is normally taken up immediately with the manufacturer or importer concerned. On a number of occasions in the past year we have approached manufacturers or importers about potentially dangerous kitchen equipment to get it modified or withdrawn. If the hon. Member has any particular equipment in mind I shall be pleased to have the matter taken up.
§ Mr. Hannamasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what is her estimate of the total number of accidental scaldings to children under the age of two years each year; what steps she is taking to reduce this number; and if she will make a statement.
Mr. Alan WilliamsNo national statistics relating to such accidents are available. In 1973, the most recent year for which information is available, there were nine fatal home accidents in England and Wales involving children under 5 years due to scalds and corrosive liquids. From information obtained from the recent feasibility study on the collection of data on home accidents we estimate that there are about 4,000 scalding accidents annually involving children under the age of two requiring hospital treatment. In the summer, in the light of data collected in the study, my Department produced a short publicity film for free television transmission about the scalding hazards of kettles. We are making a further study of home accidents resulting in burns and scalds injuries to identify the contributory causes.
§ Mr. Hannamasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what is the current annual expenditure on research into the prevention of accidents which cause severe burning, especially to young children.
Mr. Alan WilliamsA number of Departments sponsor research into various aspects of fire hazards. Much of this work, which is currently costing around £800,000 annually, will have some relevance to the incidence of burns accidents to children and adults. My Department's expenditure this year for research into the safety of consumer products generally is £77,500.
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§ Mr. Hannamasked the Secretary of State for Prices and Consumer Protection what is the current annual expenditure on educating the public on the dangers to young children within the home, in particular of accidental scalding in the kitchen.
Mr. Alan WilliamsMy Department is spending about £20,000 on home safety and firework safety publicity in the current financial year. In addition we are making a grant of £16,500 to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents to assist their production of home safety material. The Home Office campaign "Keep Matches Away from Children" earlier this year cost about £250,000.