Depleted Uranium (Hansard, 19 July 1999)

§ 30. Mr. Gordon Prentice
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reasons the Army does not hold depleted uranium munitions. [90229]

§ Mr. Doug Henderson
The Army does hold stocks of depleted uranium based ammunition.

§ Helen Jackson
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence how many individuals(a) in or formerly with the armed forces and (b) in Southern Iraq have been tested specifically for evidence of depleted uranium contamination. [90363]

§ Mr. Doug Henderson
There is no central record of any health tests conducted for those still serving or for those who have left the armed forces.
The Ministry of Defence is aware of the suggestion that exposure to depleted uranium (DU) is a cause of ill-health among some veterans of the 1990–91 Gulf conflict. Any Gulf veteran who is concerned that their health has been adversely affected by service during that conflict is entitled to seek a referral to the Ministry of Defence's Gulf Veterans' Medical Assessment Programme (MAP) for a full medical assessment. During assessment, the patient receives a set of standard tests. If the examining physician considers it clinically appropriate for a patient to receive tests to detect DU, these would be arranged. Between one and five people so far examined by MAP physicians, have exhibited symptoms that, in the judgment of the examining physicians, have indicated a clinical requirement for testing to detect DU, and have been tested.
However, a very small number of UK troops, who expressed concern that they might have inhaled DU dust during preparatory training in Saudi Arabia before the state of hostilities, were subjected to Whole Body Monitoring in February 1991. They showed no detectable contamination.
The Ministry of Defence is also aware of reports of DU testing undertaken by Professor Sharma of the University of Waterloo, Ontario, and Dr. Durakovic of Georgetown University, Washington. Dr. Durakovic discussed their work in general terms with Ministry of Defence officials in February 1999, when he explained that they are carrying out a study into uranium levels among veterans of the Gulf conflict, in which it is understood a small 424W number of UK Gulf veterans and Iraqi nationals are participating. Dr. Durakovic indicated that they plan to publish their findings, including details of the methodology they are using and the results obtained, later this year. Their work is not being undertaken at the request of the Ministry of Defence and any UK Gulf veterans who choose to participate do so on a voluntary basis.
The healthcare of Iraqi nationals, including any testing for the presence of DU, is a matter for the Iraqi Government.

§ Sir Richard Body
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, pursuant to his answer of 16 June 1999,Official Report, column 148, on Kosovo, what measures have been taken to identify targets hit by depleted uranium ammunition; and whether non-standard issue NBC kit has been issued for troops in proximity to such locations. [90950]

§ Mr. George Robertson
Although British Forces did not fire depleted uranium ammunition in Kosovo, we await information through NATO channels as to whether any such ammunition was used in the British led sector.
Service personnel deployed in Kosovo have been given appropriate guidance, and provided with standard NBC equipment, including protective gloves and respiratory equipment, which they should wear if contact with targets damaged by DU ammunition is unavoidable.

§ Dr. Lynne Jones
To ask the Secretary of State for Defence (1) what investigations he is undertaking into the environmental impact of the use of weapons containing depleted uranium during the conflict in Kosovo and Serbia; [91764]
(2) what decontamination work is taking place in Kosovo as a result of the use by US forces of weapons containing depleted uranium; what responsibility the US is taking for the cost of this work, and if (i) UK and (ii) other EU personnel are involved. [91765]

§ Mr. George Robertson
No decontamination work is currently taking place in Kosovo. A joint task force has been set up by the UN Environment Programme and the UN Commission on Settlements to assess the environmental and health aspects of the conflict. The UK stands ready to co-operate with that task force.