HL Deb 17 November 2003 vol 654 cc255-6WA
Lord Morris of Manchester

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether those commissioned and funded by them to undertake research in relation to Gulf War illnesses had already been, or are now being, informed of the disclosures that were made to Parliament in the Written Answer by the Lord Bach on 9 October (WA 67) regarding the multiple immunisation programme adopted by the Ministry of Defence for troops deployed to the Gulf in 1990–91; and [HL5112]

Whether the research staff involved in the current study at Porton Down into the safety or otherwise of the multiple immunisation programme adopted by the Ministry of Defence for troops deployed in the 1990–91 Gulf War had already been, or are now being, informed of the disclosures made in the Written Answer by the Lord Bach on 9 October (WA 67) on vaccines used during the conflict, and, if so, on what date they were informed. [HL5147]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Ministry of Defence (Lord Bach)

Researchers who have undertaken or are undertaking work on Gulf veterans' illnesses issues funded by the Ministry of Defence and commissioned through the independent Medical Research Council are responsible for ensuring that they are aware of all the information relevant to their work. Information about the medical countermeasures taken to protect personnel during the 1990–91 Gulf conflict has been in the public domain for many years and readily available on the Ministry of Defence's website. This includes my letter of 9 October. In addition, researchers at the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory, Porton Down, who are undertaking work to establish whether combinations of vaccines administered with and without pyridostigmine bromide give rise to adverse health effects were given information about the medical countermeasures taken in 1990–91 in November 1997.

Forward to