§ Mr. WatersonTo ask the Secretary of State for the Environment what further action he proposes to take on radon in homes; and if he will make a statement. [10247]
§ Mr. ClappisonRadon is a naturally occurring radioactive gas that can accumulate in homes and increase the risk of lung cancer.
My Department has had a long-established programme to identify those most at risk, and to advise them on what action to take in order to protect their health. In England, 250,000 homes have had their radon levels measured under the Government-funded measurement scheme; cost-effective methods of preventing radon from entering, new and existing homes have been developed by the Building Research Establishment; changes have been made to the building regulations to prevent radon becoming a problem in new homes; and financial assistance is available to enable the most needy householders to take remedial action.
The next phase of the radon programme will take place in early February, when 200,000 invitations to have a free radon measurement will be sent to those householders in Devon, Cornwall, Somerset, Northamptonshire and Derbyshire most likely to have high radon levels in their homes. All householders in these counties have, over the past eight years, been offered free measurements. The results obtained so far have enabled the National Radiological Protection Board to identify with far greater precision the areas within those counties where homes are most likely to have high radon levels. This allows measurement invitations to be targeted more accurately and efficiently. The offer of free measurements will therefore now be based on invitations to individual householders, and the current arrangements for free measurement will be discontinued from 29 February.
The NRPB is currently completing a mapping exercise of the whole of England. This will be published later in the year and will indicate more precisely than before those areas with high radon levels.
Radon is a serious problem, but one that is amenable to simple, relatively inexpensive solutions, developed primarily by the Department's Building Research Establishment. We shall continue to advise householders in high radon areas what action they should take. Local authorities have discretion to give grants to low-income private owners for radon remedial works.