§ Mr. Llew SmithTo ask the President of the Board of Trade what was his Department's(a) contribution towards and (b) participation in the conference on "One Decade After Chernobyl: Summing up the Consequences of the Accident" summing up the radiological consequences, held in Vienna on 8 to 12 April; and if he will place the papers to, and conclusions from, the conference in the Library. [26265]
§ Mr. PageThe conference on "One Decade After Chernobyl: Summing up the Consequences of the Accident" was sponsored by the European Commission, the International Atomic Energy Agency and the World Health Organisation. It was mainly directed at technical specialists with the aim of consolidating scientific international consensus on the health and environmental effects of the Chernobyl accident. It also reviewed the social, economic and political aftermath and considered the improvements in nuclear safety which have followed. Of the issues covered by the conference, nuclear safety is 13W the only one which falls directly to my Department. The Government's expert representation on that issue was provided by the Health and Safety Executives nuclear installations inspectorate. The IAEA, on behalf of the sponsors, will publish the proceedings of the conference. I will arrange for a copy of the final conclusions to be placed in the Library of the House as soon as these are available.