Mr. O'NeillTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what additional precautions have been taken for service personnel working in the Kuwait region since 26 February to(a) safeguard their general health and (b) reduce their exposure to air pollution;
(2) what criteria have been used to determine the levels of exposure to air pollution that are applied to service personnel who have been working in the Kuwait region since 26 February;
(3) whether anti-pollution masks have been issued to service personnel working in the Kuwait region since 26 February;
(4) what plans he has to improve anti-air pollution measures for service personnel in the Kuwait region;
(5) what assessment has been made of the application of health and safety precautions by his United States counterpart in the Kuwait region since 26 February.
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§ Mr. Archie HamiltonService personnel in close proximity to the oil fires are provided with protective masks and their lung function is being monitored.
The health and safety of personnel deployed in Kuwait is a matter of priority. The individual measures taken to ensure health and safety, which are kept under review, are based on expert advice and reflect the extensive experience of the services in such matters. No formal assessment of equivalent United States measures has been carried out.
Mr. O'NeillTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what expenditure was incurred on(a) general health and safety precautions and (b) anti-air pollution measures for service personnel working in the Kuwait region since 26 February.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonThis information is not available as it is subsumed in other costs.