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This is an HTML version of an attachment to the Freedom of Information request 'Consent for the
administration of drugs/vaccinations given to 1st Gulf War Veterans.'.
Defence Personnel Secretariat
Zone D, Sixth Floor,
MINISTRY OF DEFENCE
Main Building, London, SW1A 2HB.
Telephone: 020 721 89000

Mr Alvin Pritchard
Our Reference:

[[FOI #118372 email]]

FOI-28-06-2012-110352-001
Date: 6 July 2012

Dear Mr Pritchard,
Thank you for your correspondence dated 4 June which has been considered to be a
request for information in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act 2000. It has

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been passed to my department and I have been asked to respond.

You have asked the following questions:
You have stated that the vaccines were administered to individuals only
with their confirmed consent, however the MOD have confirmed in their
response that no such consent forms were ever issued to the troops
during this conflict. Please confirm which version of events is correct.
Dstl apologises for any inadvertent confusion that this phrase may have caused. Dstl
can confirm that the specific phrase confirmed consent referred to the practice of verbal
consent or lack of withdrawal from the vaccination process. The vaccination policy in
place during the Gulf War is clearly detailed in the report Implementation of the
Immunisation Programme against Biological Warfare Agents for UK Forces During the
Gulf Conflict 1990/91 which was researched and produced by the MOD post the Gulf
War following questions from veterans and can be found on the MOD website at
http://www.mod.uk/NR/rdonlyres/A3B0FDB0-576E-41FD-82C7DFDDE5B7A605/0/FF_Main_Report_Final.pdf. This document clearly details the
vaccination policy in place at the time and the expectations for it use and the reality as
determined by investigation post the event.
Current MOD immunisation policy requires that informed verbal consent is required from
the individual to be immunised prior to any immunisation being administered. This
requires an explanation of the procedure, discussion of risks and benefits and the
answering of questions and concerns. The giving or refusal of consent is to be recorded
in the individuals medical record.
I hope that this clarifies the use of the phrase confirmed consent as opposed to the
term informed signed consent.
I hope you find this information helpful.
Yours sincerely

Defence Personnel Secretariat

If you are not satisfied with this response or you wish to complain about any aspect of
the handling of your request, then you should contact me in the first instance. If informal
resolution is not possible and you are still dissatisfied then you may apply for an
independent internal review by contacting the Head of Corporate Information, 1st Floor,
Zone N, MOD Main Building, Whitehall, SW1A 2HB (e-mail [email address]).
Please note that any request for an internal review must be made within 40 working
days of the date on which the attempt to reach informal resolution has come to an end.
If you remain dissatisfied following an internal review, you may take your complaint to
the Information Commissioner under the provisions of Section 50 of the Freedom of
Information Act. Please note that the Information Commissioner will not investigate your
case until the MOD internal review process has been completed. Further details of the

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role and powers of the Information Commissioner can be found on the Commissioner's
website, http://www.ico.gov.uk.

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