New examination ordered on issuing of iodine tablets

The Minister for Health has asked a Government expert group to examine whether additional forms of iodine tablets should be provided to the public for dealing with nuclear emergencies.

In 2001 the Government spent over €2 million to issue iodine tablets to every household in the country. However, earlier this year it emerged that the tablets provided would be useless for dealing with an incident at the Sellafield nuclear plant.

A spokesman for Ms Harney said last night that she had ordered the reconstitution of the national expert group on nuclear emergency planning and had asked it to look again at the issue of iodine tablets.

The spokesman said it was the view of the Department of Health that it had to plan for all eventualities, and that Sellafield was not the only possible location for potential nuclear incidents.

Last night, in reply to a Dáil question, the Minister urged all new households to secure supplies of the iodine tablets which were issued generally in 2001 from their local health board.

In March it emerged that the tablets would only be effective in response to a leak of the radioactive isotope, iodine 131.

The Department of Health and the National Radiological Protection Institute accepted that Sellafield no longer handled this particular isotope.

Ms Harney, in her answer, also indicated that she did not believe that the iodine tablets could constitute a risk to public health.

A physicist with British Nuclear Fuels Ltd (BNFL) told a conference in Co Louth several months ago that the tablets could adversely affect the health of those people who may be vulnerable to iodine overdose.

However, Ms Harney said she was advised that there was no significant risk from the tablets "given that the average household will only hold one carton containing six tablets".

The Government decision to issue the tablets to every household followed a radio interview in which the minister with responsibility for nuclear safety at the time, Mr Joe Jacob, outlined how the State would respond to a terrorist attack on Sellafield.