§ Mr. Andrew Bowdenasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what are the procedures for informing the public in East Sussex and Brighton regarding precautionary measures to be adopted in the event of airborne radioactive materials reaching the area.
§ Mrs. RumboldEmergency plans to cope with the results of nuclear accidents and emergencies are described in a pamphlet entitled "Emergency plans for civil nuclear installations" published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office in 1982.
§ Mr. Colvinasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will publish a table showing the recorded levels of normal background radiation for those areas of England for which the information is available.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe National Radiological Protection Board has determined the normal background radiation throughout Great Britain. Gamma-ray dose rates were measured out of doors in most of the 10 km squares of the national grid. The information is very bulky in tabular form, so I will arrange for a radiation map of the country, prepared by NRPB, to be placed in the Library of the House.
§ Mr. Corbynasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if he will list all airborne releases from nuclear facilities in the United Kingdom for the period 25 April to 20 May.
§ Mrs. RumboldI shall answer this question shortly.
§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for the Environment from what sources his assessment of the radioactivity arising from the Chernobyl accident was made; how much of his information came from private companies; and if he is satisfied with the technical resources available to him to assess risks from such accidents.
§ Mrs. RumboldThe assessment was based on the advice of professional officers within my Department, the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food, the Department of Health and Social Security and the National Radiological Protection Board. All information available to these bodies was taken into account. Some came from private companies. Technical resources required to deal with the situation were adequate but are currently under review.
§ Mr. Austin Mitchellasked the Secretary of State for the Environment when he hopes to provide every hon. Member with a briefing note on the British Broadcasting Corporation "Panorama" programme on British radiation limits.
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§ Mrs. RumboldI hope to make this note available within the next few days.
§ Mr. Andrew Bowdenasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what is his assessment of the risk posed to the population in (a) East Sussex, (b) West Sussex, (c) Hampshire and (d) Kent in terms of the expected additional number of cancer deaths per 10,000 population as a result of the Chernobyl disaster.
§ Mr. HayhoeI have been asked to reply.
I am advised that it is not possible to provide specific information for the location requested. However, the National Radiological Protection Board has estimated that, for the population of the United Kingdom, exposure to radiation from the Chernobyl disaster could ultimately result in a few tens of additional deaths. This effectively represents less than 0.1 additional deaths per 10,000 people.
§ Mr. Corbynasked the Secretary of State for the Environment if the United States Government informed the United Kingdom Government of any releases of radioactivity in the United States of America in April; and if he will make a statement.
§ Mrs. RumboldNo.