§ 73. Mr. J. Morrisonasked the Minister of Supply if he will make a statement about the fatal accident which occurred recently at his Department's Chemical Defence Experimental Establishment.
§ Mr. SandysI regret that on 6th May L.A.C. Ronald Maddison died from the effects of asphyxia after taking part in a trial with war gas at the Chemical Defence Experimental Establishment, at Porton.
In addition to the coroner's inquest, I ordered a full technical investigation into the circumstances of the accident. The 8W report shows that all the same precautions had been observed as in the many thousands of previous trials carried out over a considerable number of years. The report raises one or two points of a technical character which are being studied. Meanwhile, further trials of this kind have been suspended.