§ The Countess of Marasked Her Majesty's Government:
What action has been taken to implement the recommendations in paragraph 6.10 of the report to Ministers by the Official Group on Organophosphates (the Carden committee). [HL2561]
§ Lord DonoughueThe recommendations to expand the range of independent expertise of the Veterinary Products Committee (VPC) and of the Medical and Scientific Panel (MSP) and the Human Suspected Adverse Reactions Appraisal Panel of the VPC have largely been implemented.
Professor Malcolm Harrington, Professor of Occupational Health at the University of Birmingham, was appointed to the Veterinary Products Committee with effect from 1 May 1998. Unfortunately, due to a clash with other commitments, he has tendered his resignation and applications to fill the vacancy for an occupational health specialist are currently under consideration.
Appointments to the Medical and Scientific Panel of the VPC took effect on 1 January 1999 as follows: Professor Nicola Cherry, Professor of Epidemiology and Occupational Health at the University of Manchester; Professor Raymond Cartwright, Director of the Leukaemia Research Fund Centre for Clinical Epidemiology at the University of Leeds; and Dr. Stephen Levy, Head of Toxicology and Risk Assessment, Medical Research Council, Institute for Environment and Health.
Appointments to the Human Suspected Adverse Reactions Appraisal Panel of the VPC also took effect on 1 January 1999 as follows: Professor P. K. Thomas, Professor of Neurology in the University of London at the Royal Free and University College Medical School and Institute of Neurology, Queen's Square; and Dr. John Cherrie, Senior Lecturer in Occupational Hygiene at the University of Aberdeen and the Institute of Occupational Medicine, Edinburgh. No application was received to fill the vacancy for a medical epidemiologist and applications will be invited in the next round of appointments.
Appointments to the Pesticide Incidents Appraisal Panel are, of course, a matter for the Health and Safety Executive (HSE). However, I understand that HSE expects to announce the addition of three independent experts to this panel within the next three months.