asked Her Majesty's Government:

What assessment they have made of the effectiveness of using hydroxyl radical generators which reproduce the disinfecting qualities of open air in railway carriages, buses, and other crowded places in reducing the spread of diseases in the event of a flu pandemic. [HL1039]

The Rapid Review Panel (RRP), convened by the Health Protection Agency at the request of the department, has evaluated some systems that generate hydroxyl radicals for air and surface decontamination purposes. Two of these products have demonstrated significant promise for outbreak situations to decontaminate wards which have been emptied of all staff/patients. Since the initial recommendation the department has held discussions with the two companies involved regarding improvements which have been made to their product since the initial RRP review. As a result, one of the products has been used within the National Health Service, and the department is pursuing discussions regarding the products uptake in the NHS.

This conclusion of usefulness for decontaminating wards could potentially be transferable to the decontamination of other enclosed spaces such as railway carriages and so on, which can be emptied of people and sealed during the decontamination process. Safety concerns surrounding the hydroxyl radicals mean that the systems are not deemed appropriate for use while members of the public are actually located in the spaces to be decontaminated. However, despite the in vitro data on flu viruses, data demonstrating a reduction in influenza transmission are lacking.