HL Deb 26 October 1994 vol 558 cc39-40WA
The Countess of Mar

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether the plague vaccine administered to members of HM Forces involved in Operation Granby was licenced for use in the United Kingdom, and if not, upon what information medical officers were able to base their advice in order to obtain the informed consent of their patients.

Lord Henley

Details relating to biological warfare protection measures employed by British Forces are classified, but all vaccines used in the Gulf are widely available and have common civilian applications. Details on their administration and effects were fully available in medical textbooks to Service medical officers, who were directed to inform recipients that minor short-term side effects might occur.