§ Lord Morris of Manchesterasked Her Majesty's Government:
Further to the Written Answer by Lord Bach on 25 February (WA 177) about the recent death of ex-Petty Officer Nigel Thompson, what is their response to The Royal British Legion's expression of disquiet that, while the United States Government accept the evidence of a comparative study that motor neurone disease is much higher among Gulf war veterans than in the population as a whole, the Ministry of Defence has still to do so. [HL3085]
§ Lord BachWe do not currently have a scientific basis on which to judge whether the incidence of motor neurone disease is much higher among Gulf veterans than in the population as a whole. As noted in my previous Answer, the US Government's decision was based on preliminary evidence only and the underlying research has not yet been published. When it is, we will consider carefully the implications for UK Gulf veterans.