| Subject: | Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe |
|---|---|
| Date: | Fri, 28 Jun 2019 16:19:55 +0100 |
| From: | |
| To: | WRAGG, William <william.wragg.mp@parliament.uk>, norman.lamb.mp@parliament.uk, Jeremy.wright.mp@parliament.uk, matt.hancock.mp@parliament.uk,commonsleader@cabinetoffice.gov.uk |
Dear William,
I’ve been posted a copy of the letter sent by Seema Kennedy MP to The Rt Hon Dr Julian Lewis MP, which was the response to one of Dr Lewis’s constituent’s concerns about 5G health effects. There was no mention of the phased array aspect of 5G antennae, just a predictable reassurance that PHE perceives no problem with 5G. I’ll deal with this another day. For today, something from the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE), whose role is to uphold human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
To save time, I’ve extracted the following from the Parliamentary Assembly’s 2011 (late 3G era) Resolution: ‘The potential dangers of electromagnetic fields and their effect on the environment’, Resolution 1815 (27th May 2011) Final version:
‘ 5. As regards standards or threshold values for emissions of electromagnetic fields of all types and frequencies,the Assembly strongly recommends that the ALARA (as low as reasonably achievable) principle is applied, covering both the so-called thermal effects and the athermic or biological effects of electromagnetic emissions or radiation. Moreover, the precautionary principle should be applied when scientific evaluation does not allow the risk to be determined with sufficient certainty. Given the context of growing exposure of the population, in particular that of vulnerable groups such as young people and children, there could be extremely high human and economic costs if early warnings are neglected.’
6. The Assembly regrets that, despite calls for the respect of the precautionary principle and despite all the recommendations, declarations and a number of statutory and legislative advances, there is still a lack of reaction to known or emerging environmental and health risks and virtually systematic delays in adopting and implementing effective preventive measures. Waiting for high levels of scientific and clinical proof before taking action to prevent well-known risks can lead to very high health and economic costs, as was the case with asbestos, leaded petrol and tobacco.
7. … It therefore highlights that the issue of independence and credibility of scientific expertise is crucial to accomplish a transparent and balanced assessment of potential negative impacts on the environment and human health.
8.1.1. take all reasonable measures to reduce exposure to electromagnetic fields, especially to radio frequencies from mobile phones, and particularly the exposure to children and young people who seem to be most at risk from head tumours;8.1.2. reconsider the scientific basis for the present standards on exposure to electromagnetic fields set by the International Commission on Non-Ionising Radiation Protection, which have serious limitations, and apply ALARA principles, covering both thermal effects and the athermic or biological effects of electromagnetic emissions or radiation;
8.2.1. set preventive thresholds for levels of long-term exposure to microwaves in all indoor areas, in accordance with the precautionary principle, not exceeding 0.6 volts per metre, and in the medium term to reduce it to 0.2 volts per metre;
8.2.4. … recommend the use of wired, fixed telephones at home or, failing that, models which do not permanently emit pulse waves;
8.3.2. for children in general, and particularly in schools and classrooms, give preference to wired Internet connections, and strictly regulate the use of mobile phones by schoolchildren on school premises;
8.4.3. reduce threshold values for relay antennae in accordance with the ALARA principle and install systems for comprehensive and continuous monitoring of all antennae;8.4.4. determine the sites of any new GSM, UMTS, WiFi or WIMAX antennae not solely according to the operators’ interests but in consultation with local and regional government authorities, local residents and associations of concerned citizens;
8.5.3. pay heed to and protect “early warning” scientists;8.5.4. formulate a human-rights-oriented definition of the precautionary and ALARA principles;
8.5.5. increase public funding of independent research, in particular through grants from industry and taxation of products that are the subject of public research studies to evaluate health risks;
On the cusp of ‘the 5G future’ and the saturation of the planet in 5G frequencies, one could remark that these dedicated defenders of human rights, democracy and the rule of law may as well have stayed at home on 27th May 2011.
with kindest regards,
Parents and Concerned Citizens Against 5G 