Briefing note to MPs on chemical weapons published one year on from Salisbury Novichok poisoning
12/03/2019 The Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE)
University of Leeds' chemical engineering postgraduate Jeni Spragg has produced a report to help UK parliamentarians make evidence-based decisions on chemical weapons policy.It follows on from the UK Government's Defence Secretary announcing an additional £11m funding to bolster the UK's ability to identify chemical weapons threats and combat them. A Novichok nerve agent was used in Salisbury on 4 March 2018 to poison Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia Skripal. They were both admitted to hospital in a critical condition. A police officer at the scene, Nick Bailey, was also taken to intensive care.
Jeni Spragg, a postgraduate student in bioenergy at the University of Leeds, produced the briefing note for policymakers after being awarded the Ashok Kumar Fellowship in 2018 by the Institution of Chemical Engineers (IChemE) and the UK Parliamentary Office for Science and Technology (POST).
She spent three months at POST researching and writing the briefing note (POSTnote), which included interviewing over 20 experts from government departments, academia, industry, learned societies, think tanks and NGOs. Her report, Chemical Weapons, gives an overview of types of chemical weapons, how they can be deployed, and their effects on human health and the environment. It also gives an overview of chemical defence in the UK, including the measures in place to prevent, respond to and recover from chemical weapons attacks.
Spragg gave policymakers and members of the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee a taster of her findings at a recent meeting held at the Houses of Parliament on 25 February. The meeting, entitled 'What did we learn from Salisbury?' was chaired by Stephen Metcalfe MP and also welcomed Professor Les Baillie from Cardiff University, who discussed the increasing threat of bioterrorism and biological weapons.
Spragg discussed the current policies in place for controlling chemical weapons, governed by the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW). Novichoks are a class of nerve agents that present particular challenges, as they are not listed in the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), and no state has ever declared having them.
Jeni Spragg said:
"It was a unique opportunity to speak about my POSTnote at the Parliamentary and Scientific Committee meeting. The meeting attendees had some interesting viewpoints about the role of the Chemical Weapons Convention and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons; particularly in terms of how they stay relevant in the future.
"My time at POST was a fantastic, hands-on experience. In three months, I learnt so much about how parliament works and had the opportunity to speak to key policymakers and parliamentary advisors. It really opened my eyes to the important role and expertise that chemical engineers, and others with STEM expertise, can play to help MPs make evidence-based decisions on policy issues. I'm grateful for everything I've learned through the Ashok Kumar Fellowship."
Dr Lorna Christie, Physical Sciences and IT Adviser, POST said:
"Working alongside Jeni for three months on this timely and interesting topic has been a pleasure. Jeni used her academic rigour to review evidence in the area and honed her science communication skills in writing her research up in an accessible way.
"Our POSTnote is an impartial and engaging summary of chemical weapons that can be used by parliamentarians, academics and the general public wanting to know more about this significant area. POST fellowships are an excellent way for PhD students to experience first-hand how parliament works and develop skills that they can carry with them in their future career."
Claudia Flavell-While, IChemE Director, Learned Society, added:
"Jeni's work in this fellowship is an excellent example of the valuable expertise of chemical, biochemical and process engineers in providing solutions to national policy issues on contentious topics; in this particular case, chemical weapons."
For more inforamtion, please visit: www.icheme.org
Print this articleShare article:
Process and Control Today are not responsible for the content of submitted or externally produced articles and images. Click here to email us about any errors or omissions contained within this article.