§ Vernon CoakerTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the guidelines to the NHS regarding the provision of, and access to, latex-free material and equipment. [77019]
§ Mr. HuttonGuidance issued to the national health service relating to latex and latex-free equipment is based on the Health and Safety at Work etc Act 1974, and is intended to remind NHS managers of their duty to comply with that legislation in assessing risks to their staff.
A wide range of latex-free equipment is now being manufactured and many companies are now moving away from using latex in their products altogether. There are no cost implications associated with using latex-free equipment, and the latest data from NHS Logistics suggest that NHS employers are increasingly moving to latex-free equipment.