Lockerbie (Hansard, 30 June 1997)

§ Mr. Spellar

This is a matter for the Chief Executive of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency. I have asked the Chief Executive to write to the hon. Member.

Letter from John Chisholm to Mr. Tam Dalyell, dated 30 June 1997: I have been asked to reply to your question about the exclusion of representatives of the UK Lockerbie Families group from the recent explosive tests at Bruntingthorpe since, as Chief Executive of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency (DERA) which undertook the tests, this matter is my responsibility. The research being carried out by DERA is on behalf of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and is aimed at exploring what physical effects would result from an explosion in an aircraft at altitude and subsequently what measures might be introduced to contain those effects and limit the structural damage to the aircraft. It was those measures that were being tested in the trial. Although the media were allowed to cover the event, both DERA and its customers were concerned to ensure that the trial was reported factually as part of a disciplined and ongoing programme of scientific work. To that end DERA agreed to requests from its customers to make it a condition of entry to the site by media crews that they should not be accompanied by other parties who might seek to broaden the coverage into areas not directly concerned with the trial itself. This condition was enforced rigidly and therefore included representatives of the UK Lockerbie Families group. In fact, before the event, several television companies requested that Dr Jim Swire of the 'UK Families—Flight 103' group be allowed to accompany them to watch the trial and were informed that this would not be possible. The position taken over the trial does not indicate any lack of compassion for the victims and families involved in the Lockerbie disaster. Indeed it is precisely the scale of that tragedy that has prompted the research programme which culminated in the trial at Bruntingthorpe and which, we hope, will eventually bring real benefit to aircraft safety.