§ Jeremy CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what stocks of weapons containing depleted uranium are held in(a) United Kingdom bases and (b) by United Kingdom forces operating in Iraq. [79654]
§ Mr. IngramI am withholding details in accordance with Exemption 1 of the Code of Practice on Access to Government Information.
§ Jeremy CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence how much depleted uranium was used in bombing campaigns by United Kingdom forces in(a) the 1990–91 Gulf War and (b) bombing campaigns over Iraq since 1991. [79741]
§ Mr. IngramNo depleted uranium was used in bombing campaigns by United Kingdom forces in the 1990–1991 Gulf Conflict or in bombing campaigns over Iraq since 1991.
§ Jeremy CorbynTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what information he has collated on the effects of depleted uranium exposure on the(a) military personnel and (b) civilian population in Iraq since 1991; and if he will make a statement. [79655]
§ Mr. IngramMany independent reports have been produced that consider the battlefield effects of using depleted uranium (DU) munitions, but none has found widespread DU contamination sufficient to affect the health of the general population or deployed personnel.
The Ministry of Defence has no information on exposure of Iraqi military personnel or civilians to DU. We support proposals by the World Health Organisation to carry out studies to address public health issues in Iraq, including a proposal to explore health effects of environmental risk factors, including DU. The proposals were sent to the Iraq Ministry of Public Health in October 2001 but there has been no response.
3,339 United Kingdom military personnel who served in the Gulf Conflict have now been seen by the Gulf Veterans' Medical Assessment Programme (GVMAP). Physicians at the GVMAP examine all those attending for signs of ill health that could be attributed to exposure to DU, but no such evidence has been found to date.
Under the auspices of the independent Depleted Uranium Oversight Board a test for DU in urine is currently being developed and we hope to be able to make it available to all those who wish to be tested in the first half of next year. In parallel with this, we will also carry out an epidemiological study which will examine the link between exposure to DU and health.
No UK troops who served in the Gulf experienced the highest level of DU. However, 33 United States soldiers were exposed to DU when their vehicles were accidentally hit by DU rounds of whom 17 have embedded DU shrapnel. Their health is closely monitored by the US Government and so far has shown no signs of health problems attributable to DU.