§ Mr. Meadowcroftasked the Secretary of State for Social Services on what basis details of the treatment for water supplies, Hatacide LP5, were excluded from his Department's guidelines to control legionnaire's disease circulated to area health authorities; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeBiocides have not been excluded from our Department's guidelines on the control of legionnaire's disease as they can play an important role in water treatment. However, where our guidance states that chlorine should be used, we do not consider that biocides are a suitable alternative. In our opinion, sufficient statistical evidence has not been published to support the claims of the manufacturers and to justify the substitution of the biocide Hatacide LP5, for chlorine in the six monthly disinfection of cooling towers and evaporative condensers. The best information available indicates that none of the reported outbreaks of legionnaire's disease has been associated with a water cooling system that has received regular conventional treatment. Comparisons of the conventional treatment of water in evaporative condensers and cooling towers with treatment using the large range of biocides available commercially would entail lengthy control tests in-situ.
§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services how many people are known by his Department or the communicable disease surveillance centre to have died of legionnaire's disease in the last year.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThere have been 29 deaths from confirmed cases of legionnaire's disease where the onset of illness incurred in the last 12 months.
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§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he is now in a position to make a statement on the source of legionnaire's disease in Stafford.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeI shall be making an announcement very shortly about the inquiry into the outbreak of legionnaire's disease. The source of the outbreak is something which the inquiry will want to consider.
§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, further to the Minister of State's answer of 14 May,Official Report, column 118, what was the source of infection in the cases of legionnaire's disease in Portsmouth, Bristol, Birmingham, Leicester, Sheffield and London, respectively.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeThe source of infection in these cases has not been confirmed and may never be confirmed. The history of this disease, since it was first identified, has always included a number of sporadic and sometimes isolated cases where the source of infection remains undetermined.
§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, further to the Minister of State's Answer of 14 May,Official Report, column 118, whether he will instruct the communicable disease surveillance centre to notify him of all cases of legionnaire's disease for the time being.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeArrangements have already been made for the communicable disease surveillance centre to advise us of all confirmed cases for the time being.
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(i) Hospitals approved for complete closure May 1979 to December 1979 Region and Area/District Hospital Number of beds Date approved Northern Durham Darlington Memorial Hospital, Hunden's Unit 125 July 1979 Yorkshire Humberside Townend Maternity Hospital 17 August 1979 Trent Derbyside Nightingale Maternity Home 34 July 1979 Sheffield Wales Court Hospital, Sheffield 79 December 1979 North West Thames Barnet St. Elizabeth's Hospital, Barnet 40 June 1979 Barnet Orme Lodge, Barnet 22 December 1979 Barnet Stanmore Cottage Hospital 14 December 1979 North East Thames Camden and Islington Garrett Anderson Maternity Home 32 September 1979 South East Thames West Lambeth Holmhurst Hospital 24 December 1979 South West Thames Mid Surrey Schiff Hospital, Surrey 84 December 1979 Wessex Dorset Capesthorne children's Unit, Dorset 22 May 1979 Oxford Berkshire Peppard Hospital, Berkshire 136 November 1979 Oxfordshire Cowley Road Hospital 172 November 1979 Mersey Chester Barrowmore Hospital, Chester 118 June 1979
§ Mr. Dobsonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services, further to the Minister of State's Answer of 14 May,Official Report, column 118, whether any more people have died of legionnaire's disease in Stafford.
§ Mr. Kenneth ClarkeBy 10 am on 20 May, a total of 37 people showing the symptoms of acute respiratory illness had died since the beginning of the outbreak of legionnaire's disease in Stafford. Of these, 14 were confirmed cases of legionnaire's disease.