Brown tackles minister on Fife beach radioactivity
GORDON Brown will raise fears about the risk of radioactivity at a Scottish coastal resort when he meets Defence Secretary Philip Hammond today.
The former prime minister, whose constituency includes Dalgety Bay in Fife, has called for a long-term plan to prevent particles causing safety fears again as a proposal to investigate the contamination until May 2013 is considered.
The Food Standards Agency has said contaminated shellfish from the beach is unfit to eat because of possible radiation doses. More than 2500 radioactive hotspots have been found on the foreshore in the past 22 years.
Mr Brown said: “I will be asking for a timetable for a clean-up plan for the area to be implemented.
“We need not only a plan for continuous monitoring but a plan for the removal of radio-active particles, and either a sea wall or other remedial work to prevent particles causing safety fears again.”
Meanwhile, Glasgow University’s Professor Alex Elliott, chairman of the Government’s advisory Committee on the Medical Aspects of Radiation in the Environment has criticised public advice from the Health Protection Agency that risks were “low”.
The HPA has defended its health advice, issued last year, saying it has complete confidence in its assessment of the risks.
The Ministry of Defence said it had demonstrated a “serious commitment” to helping the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) over Dalgety Bay and had reached agreement with Sepa on assessing residual risks and deciding on remedial action.