HC Deb 27 June 1986 vol 100 cc352-4W
Dr. David Clark

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will place in the Library the statistics relating to the testing of foodstuffs since the Chernobyl incident.

Mr. Jopling

I have placed in the Library of the House the results of monitoring of foodstuffs published by my Department on 20 June

Mr. Home Robertson

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the instances known to his Department where food has been found to be contaminated to a level of 1,000 becquerels/kilo or more since the Chernobyl disaster, giving the type of food, the location and the level of contamination.

Mr. Jopling

[pursuant to his reply, Thursday 26 June 1986]: I refer the hon. Member to the data published by my Department on 20 June, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.

Mr. Home Robertson

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish a table showing, in comparable terms, the levels of radioactive contamination of food which are officially recognised in the United Kingdom as being normal, requiring precautions and dangerous, respectively, together with such comparable information as is available relating to France, West Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Switzerland, Finland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Poland and Czechoslovakia.

Mrs. Fenner

[pursuant to her reply, Thursday 26 June 1986]: Control of exposure to radiation in the United Kingdom is exercised on the basis of recommendations published by the International Commission on Radiological Protection (ICRP).

Generalised Derived Limits (GDLs) are published by the National Radiological Protection Board (NRPB) for a range of radionuclides in a variety of foodstuffs, and these are designed to ensure that prolonged exposure will not result in the 1CRP done limits being exceeded. Different considerations apply in an emergency and the NRPB have also published guidance on derived emergency reference levels which take into account the transient nature of the contamination; the levels are therefore higher then the GDLs. We have not been officially notified of the levels operating in the other countries referred to, but most if not all also subscribe to the recommendations of the ICRP, interpreting them according to their own particular circumstances.

Mr. D. E. Thomas

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will publish details of all measurements of radiation taken on behalf of his Department since 2 May giving details of the materials sampled, the location and timing of each sample, and the results of each monitoring.

Mrs Fenner

[pursuant to her reply, Thursday 26 June 1986]: The data published by my Department on 20 June (a copy of which is in the Library of the House) contain the results of monitoring for radioactive contamination by my Department since the beginning of May. Results of further monitoring will be published regularly.

Mr. John

asked the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food if he will list the dates on which lambs tested for radioactivity were found to have had doses in excess of 600 becquerels per kilo, the number of animals involved on each date, and the exact reacting in each instance.

Mrs. Fenner

[pursuant to her reply, 26 June 1986]: I refer the hon. Member to the monitoring data published by my Department on 20 June, a copy of which is in the Library of the House.