§ Mr. SpellerTo ask the Secretary of State for Employment what are the three most common forms of illness among farm workers related to veterinary, pesticide or other chemical formulations used in agriculture; and how he seeks to combat them.
§ Mr. ForthComprehensive comparative information on the effects of chemical exposure in agriculture, which would be necessary to determine the three most common forms of illness, is not available. Incidents involving pesticide poisoning however are reported annually by the Health and Safety Executive and the report for 1990–91 was published on 16 July. Copies of the report will be placed in the House of Commons Library.
Exposure to hazardous chemical formulations used in agriculture is subject to the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 1988 and, in the case of pesticides, the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986. These regulations place duties on employers to safeguard the health of employees and the public and are enforced by inspectors of the Health and Safety Executive.
The Health and Safety Executive is also sponsoring a pilot "Green Card" surveillance scheme to provide an assessment of the extent of poisoning by veterinary and pesticide products. This scheme has recently been launched in the West Midlands and Trent health authorities and will include reporting by GPs of suspected cases of poisoning and the provision of a hotline to give immediate specialist advice.
The Health and Safety Executive contributes to the suspected adverse reaction scheme operated by the veterinary medicines directorate. The executive has also recently carried out a special survey into sheep dip exposure, the results of which have been made known to the Veterinary Products Committee which is currently reviewing the licensing of sheep dip products.