§ Mr. Oakesasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he will name in the Official Report the present members of the Industrial Injuries Advisory Council, giving their medical or other qualifications and the date of their appointment.
§ Mr. PrenticeThe information requested is as follows:
No figures are available, nationally or regionally, of the number of children suffering from damage to the central nervous system, so that it is not possible to calculate the relationship between the number of awards under the Act and the total number of persons suffering from equivalent disabilities. It is clear, however, that the vaccine damage cases are only a small proportion of the total. The Pearson report quoted an estimate of 100,000 children under 16 with severe handicaps of all types, whereas the awards made in respect of vaccine damage in respect of persons now under 16 amount to less than 250.
Details of the 353 awards under the Vaccine Damage Payments Act made up to 18 January 1980, analysed by country 315W of residence and the vaccination concerned, are shown in my reply to my hon. Friend, the Member for Christchurch and Lymington, (Mr. Adley) on 28 January.—[Vol. 977, c. 483–84.] As the scheme is centrally administered for the whole of the United Kingdom, any further subdivision of awards to date by administrative area of residence could be provided only by making a special scrutiny of all the awards, which would impede the process of dealing with reviews of claims.