§ The Countess of Marasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether any vaccines other than yellow fever, tetanus, typhoid, cholera, hepatitis A. B, rabies, anthrax, pertussis (as an adjuvant) and bubonic plague were used as part of the medical countermeasures programme before and during Operation Granby.
§ Lord GilbertDuring the Gulf War three vaccines—anthrax, pertussis, as an adjuvant, and plague—were used in the UK anti-biological warfare agent immunisation programme. Details of these vaccines were published on 28 October in the paperBackground to the use of medical countermeasures to protect British Forces during the Gulf War (Op. GRANBY), a copy of which has been placed in the Library of the House.
British troops could also have received a number of routine immunisations. These were those which service personnel are normally required to have, for yellow fever, tetanus, typhoid and poliomyelitis; those appropriate for travellers to the region, for cholera; and those appropriate to particular categories of Service personnel, for hepatitis B. Recent work on Gulf War records suggests some troops also received meningitis vaccine.
There have also been suggestions that other standard vaccines were used. For example, hepatitis A and rabies are two vaccines that are sometimes given to travellers to the region. Hepatitis A immunoglobulin is also known to have been available in-theatre. As yet the MoD has no specific evidence of these three products being used. However, the Fact Finding Team which is conducting a study into the implementation in-theatre of the anti-biological warfare agent immunisation programme is also seeking more information on the range of standard vaccines which may have been received by certain groups of Service personnel.