§ Mr. DalyellTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what research is funded by his Department into polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and their carcinogenic consequences.
§ Mr. DorrellFunding of research on biomedical aspects of the effects of environmental pollution on health lies within the remit of the Medical Research Council and the Department keeps the results of research in this area under review.
The small area health statistics unit at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, which is jointly funded by this and other Government Departments, has been asked to investigate cancer and mortality rates around industrial installations such as cooking works and incinerators both of which are known to emit polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).
The Department is also funding work at the Laboratory of the Government Chemist which includes an investigation of the PAHs present in cigarette smoke.