§ Mr. Staintonasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will set up an inquiry by his Department into the possibility of miscarriages in humans resulting from the agricultural application of the chemical 2,4,5-T in the light of the suspected case on 21 November submitted to him by the hon. Member for Sudbury and Woodbridge.
§ Dr. VaughanNo. I know of no substantial evidence of a possible link between the agricultural application of the herbicide 2,4,5-T and human miscarriages, either from this country or the various studies conducted abroad. The use of this herbicide in the United Kingdom is controlled by the pesticides safety precautions scheme. Any evidence of adverse health effects from its use would be referred for expert examination and assessment to the Government's advisory committee on pesticides on which the Department is represented.
I am looking into the case which my hon. Friend referred to me on 13 November and will write to him about the matter; I have no trace of a relevant letter from him dated 21 November.