§ Mr. Ieuan Wyn JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how many incidents of food poisoning were recorded in Wales between April and October of the current year; and what were the half-yearly figures recorded in Wales during the last three years.
§ Mr. GristThere were 2,120 notifications to the Office of Population Censuses and Surveys of food poisoning in Wales between 1 April and 27 October 1989. Half-yearly statistics for the past three years are shown in the table:
Notifications1 of food poisoning January to June July to December 1986 488 925 1987 687 988 1988 784 21,169 1989 21,022 1 Includes food poisoning formally notified and food poisoning ascertained by other means. 2 Data from the fourth quarter 1988 onwards are derived from OPCS Monitor, Weekly Return (WR Series) and are provisional. Preceding data are derived from OPCS Monitor, Infectious Diseases (MB2 Series).
§ Mr. Ieuan Wyn JonesTo ask the Secretary of State for Wales how much time it takes on average for incidents of food poisoning in Wales to be communicated to the population at large.
§ Mr. GristLocal authorities have the prime responsibility for controlling food poisoning outbreaks, but in 127W certain circumstances the Welsh Office may be involved. Most incidents are small in scale and/or confined to a readily identifiable group of people. As such warnings to the public at large are not necessarily appropriate. Where however the extent and geographical distribution of a particular incident warrants a general warning, the aim is to issue suitable, specific guidance as soon as it is practicable to do so.
During the recent serious incident of food poisoning involving salmonella typhimurium in north Wales, several press notices containing specific advice to the public were released by the Department. On each occasion, the notice was released on the same date as the information it contained was received from the local authorities involved.