Gulf War Syndrome (Hansard, 9 January 1996)

§ Mr. Ainger
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what was the amount of each of the ingredients in the nerve agent pre-treatment tablet set L1A1 given to Her Majesty's armed forces during the Gulf War. [7684]

§ Mr. Soames
The nerve agent pre-treatment set tablet L1A1 given to British troops during the Gulf war consisted of the following constituents:

Pyridostigmine bromide: 31.5mg (active constituent)

Pregelatinised starch: 56.8 mg
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Maize starch: 35.0mg

Lactose: 27.5mg

Colloidal silicon dioxide: 25.5mg

Talc: 3.5mg

Magnesium stearate: 0.25mg.

§ Mr. Ainger
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence what is his current policy in respect of the recognition of Gulf war syndrome. [7731]

§ Mr. Soames
The MOD recognises that some individual Gulf veterans have become ill and keeps an open mind on any possible link to Gulf service. However, the most extensive and detailed investigations, in this country and other Gulf coalition countries, have so far found no medical or scientific evidence to date to suggest the existence of a unique medical condition or syndrome. The Royal College of Physicians gave broad endorsement to our work in July 1995 and recommended that expert advice be sought on the possible direction of future research. We are currently following this up.

§ Mr. Ainger
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the known side effects of the inoculations given to Her Majesty's forces prior to and during the Gulf war. [7681]

§ Mr. Soames
The only known side effects are short term and commonly occur after the administration of any vaccine or combination of vaccines. These side effects can include soreness or swelling at injection site and possible nausea. Severe reactions, such as anaphylactic shock, are extremely rare.

§ Mr. Ainger
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many nerve agent pre-treatment tablets set L1A1 each Her Majesty's forces personnel were instructed to take each day during the Gulf war. [7682]

§ Mr. Soames
During the periods when there was an assessed threat of possible chemical agent attack, orders were given for British troops in the Gulf theatre of operations to take nerve agent pre-treatment set tablets in accordance with the recommended dose, which is one 30mg NAPS tablet taken every eight hours.

§ Mr. Ainger
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the side effects of the ingredients in the nerve agent pre-treatment tablet set L1A1. [7683]

§ Mr. Soames
It is well recognised that the active constituent of the nerve agent pre-treatment set pyridostigmine bromide, can have minor short-term side effects on a minority of those taking the drug. These include sweating, excess salivation, abdominal pains and diarrhoea. The side effects cease when the tablets are stopped and there is no record of long-term adverse effects resulting from the drug.