§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many deaths in fires, in each of the last five years for which figures are available, can be directly attributed to polyurethane foam-filled furniture; and if he will consult the Fire Brigades Union on the matter.
§ Mr. MayhewInformation is not available on deaths directly attributable to combustion of polyurethane foam-filled furniture. The information available to us is given in the following table. If the Fire Brigades Union has any 'further relevant statistical information, we should, of course, be grateful for it.
500W501W
Deaths from fires attended by local authority fire brigades in which involvement of upholstered furniture was reported United Kingdom Number of deaths Type of involvement Item involved Year As item first ignited As item mainly responsible for development of fire though not ignited first Upholstery reported †l978 16 16 to contain plastic 1979 43 28 foam* 1980 40 21 All upholstery, †l978 105 30 covers 1979 160 49 1980 169 38 * Some deaths may be omitted owing to the difficulty of identifying the composition of items burned in fires.
† These figures are probably incomplete because of incomplete reporting of fires in January and February, during the fire service strike, at the time of year when the frequency of such fires is greater than average.
§ Mr. Alfred Morrisasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department what representations the Government received from Mr. Ian McCreath, the coroner for North Northumberland, urging a national publicity campaign to educate the general public about the dangers of polyurethane foam; what reply was sent; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mr. MayhewMr. McCreath wrote to my right hon. Friend the Minister for Consumer Affairs in July drawing attention to observations made by the jury in an inquest into the tragic circumstances in which three people died as a result of a fire above a public house. He had been invited to ask for the launch of a national publicity campaign about the dangers of polyurethane foam-filled furniture, and he strongly supported this request.
In her reply, my right hon. Friend referred to measures taken by the Department of Trade to publicise the Upholstered Furniture (Safety) Regulations 1980, and said that the need for a national campaign would best be considered in the context of the Home Office programme of general fire prevention education and publicity.
Subsequently, my noble Friend, the Under-Secretary of State, wrote to the coroner pointing out that much general publicity material, including the booklet "Danger from Fire", already takes account of the hazards presented by modern furnishing materials. But he undertook to pursue, in consultation with the Department of Trade and other interests, the possibility of producing a short television "filler" film on this subject. This possibility is still being considered.