Expert defends phone safety stance

There was no valid scientific reason for the Department of Communications to warn against the use of mobile phones by children, its chief technical adviser told an Oireachtas committee yesterday.

Addressing the Joint Committee on Communications, Marine and Natural Resources, Mr Bob Hanna said the Department adopted a precautionary approach on the issue of mobile phone safety.

He said the Department's position "would change overnight" if something positive in relation to the health risk of mobile phones was found.

The committee hearing on mobile phone safety was called in the wake of a report by the British National Radiological Protection Board earlier this month which advised parents not to give mobiles to young children.

Mr Hanna said that this was "a cautionary recommendation" by the chairman of the UK body but there had been no positive health risk established in relation to children using mobile phones.

Mr Hanna said that the communications regulator Comreg had carried out an investigation of 400 mobile base stations and had found that none were exceeding the guidelines on radiation.

He said there had been 25,000 peer-reviewed studies into mobile phone safety issues and that eight of these had suggested links between high levels of non-ionising radiation and adverse health incidents such as childhood leukaemia.

"All eight were repeated under scientific conditions but it was not possible to replicate the findings," he said.

Dr Elizabeth Cullen, of the Irish Doctors' Environmental Association, said that around 1 per cent of the population was sensitive to electro-magnetic radiation such as that emitted from mobile phones.

Dr Cullen said that recent evidence had shown that long-term users of mobile phones may suffer from headache, extreme irritation, increased forgetfulness and decreased reflexes.