§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence if he will list the membership of the Independent Panel on Gulf War Illnesses, including the term of appointment in each case and any changes to the membership; how often it meets; and if he will make a statement. [113958]
§ Mr. SpellarThe Independent Panel on Vaccines Interactions was established to scrutinise all aspects of proposals for research into the potential adverse effects of interactions between the vaccines and tablets which could have been administered to Service personnel at the time of the Gulf conflict. The Panel is chaired by Professor Donald Davies. The other Panel members are: Professor J. E. Banatvala, Professor P. Beverley, Dr. J. Bird, 827W Dr. A. Boylston, Dr. P. Fawcett, Professor A. Grossman, Professor Malcolm Hooper, Dr. Ian Kimber, Dr. Norman Jones, Professor Stafford Lightman, Dr. Christopher Martyn, Dr. Elizabeth Miller, Dr. David Ray, Professor E. M. Sedgwick, Professor A. Silman and Dr. Geoffrey Schild.
The Panel has met on four occasions since December 1997. The frequency of the meetings is dictated by the research programme. Professor Davies was appointed chairman in January 1999. Professor Hooper, Dr. Schild and Dr. Kimber have all joined the Panel since the first meeting. Panel members are not appointed for a specific term.
§ Mr. HancockTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence for what reason no minutes were taken of the meeting on 29 March 1999 between Professor Hooper and the Independent Panel on Gulf War Illnesses; if he will place copies of the presentations made at the meeting in the Library; and if he will make a statement. [113898]
§ Mr. SpellarOn the evening of 29 March 1999, the Head of the Gulf Veterans' Medical Assessment Programme gave a presentation on Gulf veterans' illnesses to the Independent Panel, of which Professor Hooper is a member. Only personal notes were used and, as the presentation was informal, no minutes were taken.