Vol. 574 No. 1
125 Mr. Perry asked the Minister for Communications, Marine and Natural Resources if his Department has or will be carrying out a survey on the use of mobile phones that might harm a user's health; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [26379/03]
Ireland, through my Department, has actively participated in the World Health Organisation's international EMF project since joining as a founder member in 1996. The main purpose of this project is to investigate the possible association between illness and exposure to electromagnetic fields. On three occasions Ireland has chaired the annual meeting of the WHO's international advisory committee to the EMF project.
The need to monitor the health of mobile phone users was recognised by both WHO and the European Commission in 1996 and was the subject of expert reports commissioned at that time. On receipt of the recommendations of these reports, the EU and WHO undertook a detailed feasibility study, co-ordinated by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, IARC, which is part of the WHO. This feasibility study was carried out in 1998 and 1999 in a number of countries. Its principal objective was to see whether it was possible to study the relationship between mobile phone use and brain cancer in circumstances where, among other things, almost everyone now uses mobile phones. The study concluded that, with careful planning and control, it should be possible to undertake an epidemiological study that would detect an increase in cancers of the head associated with mobile phone use, if such an increase were to exist in fact.
A series of multinational studies is now under way. The work is being co-ordinated by IARC and supported by the WHO with a grant from the quality of life programme of the European Commission. Financial support has also been provided by the fifth framework research programme of the EU.
