§ Mr. Peter RobinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration was given to monitoring for health effects after administration of the drugs and vaccines administered to service men, either during or after Operation Granby, with particular reference to compounds that were unlicensed at the time of administration.
§ Mr. SoamesAll aspects of the health of service personnel are monitored, in peace and war, as a matter of routine. During the Gulf war, routine monitoring did not detect any adverse effects to health which would warrant special additional monitoring either during, or after, Operation Granby.
§ Mr. Peter RobinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration was given to administering toxicology and virology tests to all those suffering from illness related to Operation Granby; and what was the reason for not doing so.
§ Mr. SoamesIndividuals who believe that they are suffering from unexplained illnesses as a result of service in Operation Granby are offered a medical examination through my Department's Gulf assessment programme. The special tests employed on this programme are tailored to the particular requirements of each patient after considering the medical and occupational history, the reported symptoms and clinical signs found on examination. If indicated, these special tests can include toxicological and virology tests.
§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer to the hon. Member for South Shields (Dr. Clark), of 20 December 1994,Official Report, column 1179, if he will set out the reasons why the specific counter-measures adopted against potential biological warfare by British forces in Operation Granby in the Gulf war are classified.
§ Mr. SoamesInformation relating to the specific counter-measures adopted against potential biological warfare by British forces in the Gulf war could be useful to terrorists and potentially hostile intelligence services. Its continued classification is to protect British troops who may face a biological warfare threat in the future.
§ Mr. Peter RobinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what consideration was given to compiling a list of all recipients of the drugs or vaccines administered during Operation Granby, with particular reference to prescription-only medicines, with a view to recording them on the recipient's medical records; and what were the reasons for not doing so.
§ Mr. SoamesStandard peacetime procedures involve records of vaccines and prescribed medication being kept on every individual's service medical documents. Under operational conditions, individual service medical records are not held locally for logistic reasons, and a field medical documentation system is invoked. During 191W Operation Granby, vaccinations or prescribed medications are entered on a nominal roll for later transfer to individual records. Given the repaid repatriation and demobilisation of personnel at the end of the conflict, it is likely that some individual medical records were not fully annotated. As a result, no reliable comprehensive list of recipients could be now compiled.
§ Mr. Peter RobinsonTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence from whom and by what means plague vaccine, batch No. 10H03A, was obtained.
§ Mr. SoamesDetails of specific medical counter-measures employed by British forces against potential biological warfare threat during Operation Granby remain classified.