Vol. 473 No. 1
349 Mr. Sargent asked the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Forestry if sarin, the trade name for fluoride nerve gas, isopropyl methyl phosphonofluoride or a related compound is used as a herbicide on sugar beet or in any other agricultural use in Ireland. [24681/96]
Sarin, which is the common name for the nerve gas isopropyl methyl phosphonofluoride, is not authorised for use as a herbicide on sugar beet or for any other agricultural use in Ireland. There is no herbicide with a chemical structure similar to sarin and with a similar toxicological profile authorised for use as a herbicide in Ireland.
There are many insecticides authorised for use in Ireland which contain organophosporous active substances. In all cases the insecticides concerned are authorised for use throughout the European Union. Although chemically related to sarin, they have a much lower mammalian toxicity than sarin.
