Nanotechnology Health and Safety debated in Parliament
Recent parliamentary discussions saw Ian Pearson MP provide MPs in the House of Parliament with an overview of current UK efforts to regulate nanotechnology health and safety.
Pearson, who is Minister of State (Minister for Science and Innovation) in the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) gave the house information on the current state of health & safety standards in nanotechnology research in response to a parliamentary question on the 21st February.
In his response, Pearson stressed to the house the Government's commitment to understanding any potential risks of nanotechnologies and to managing them within a proportionate regulatory framework.To illustrate this, Pearson provided information on the ministerial cross-departmental group that co-ordinates the UK’s programme of research into the health, safety and environmental implications of nanotechnologies. Pearson chairs this group which brings together Ministers from DEFRA, DH, DWP and BERR.
As part of this, a new project examining Health and Safety Exposure Assessment in the Workplace Relating to Nanotechnologies, the outcome of which is expected to form the basis of a new standard in research development was outlined. SAFENANO/IOM's capabilities in the nanotechnology health and safety field were also recognised through a specific mention of the merits of BSI PD 6699-2 - Guide to Safe Handling and Disposal of Manufactured Nanomaterials which was written by the SAFENANO team for BSI. Of the guide, Pearson commented “[it] provides advice on good practice to those working in laboratories where research on new materials and applications is being undertaken, as this is where exposure to engineered free nanoscale materials is most likely to occur at present”.To access the Hansard transcript of the parliamentary discussion of nanotech, please click here.
http://www.parliament.the-stationery-office.co.uk/pa/cm200708/cmhansrd/cm080221/text/80221w0008.htm