Mobiles ring further alarm bells

The government has announced a multi-million pound research programme into the safety of mobile phones after an official inquiry warned they may be harmful to children.

Many UK mobile phone users were left confused yesterday after the much publicised Stewart Report found no evidence of a health risk to mobile users, but then discouraged children from making unnecessary calls.

The report, commissioned by the government last year, recommended that tough controls need to be brought in despite concluding that there was no scientific evidence proving that mobile phones or mobile phone masts were harmful.

The report recommended that particular attention needed to be paid to the installation of masts near schools. All masts will now need planning permission and must be regularly inspected. If masts are situated close to a school, beams with the greatest intensity must not fall on school buildings or grounds.

It also recommended that a national database be set up giving details of all base stations and their emissions.

The government said it agreed with the report's recommendations, and that it will launch a comprehensive multi-million pound programme of research by September 2000.

Findings from the report were largely welcomed yesterday. The Federation of the Electronics Industry, which represents the UK mobile phone industry, said it was particularly pleased that the evidence does not suggest mobile phone technologies put the health of the general population of the UK at risk.

The Consumer Association, spurred on by the Stewart Group's recommendation that the government introduce independent testing, along with kite marks on shielding devices and hands-free kits, said it also supported the findings.

Tests by the consumer magazine Which?, claiming that hands-free kits increase exposure to radiation by up to three times, were dismissed by the mobile phone industry last month. But the magazine has said it will continue to warn people not to rely on such equipment until standards are put in place.

Key findings from the report:

• Exposure to radio frequency radiation below guideline levels does not cause adverse health risks to the general population
• The use of mobile phones in cars can increase the chance of accidents
• The widespread use of mobile phones by children for non-essential calls should be discouraged
• There is no general risk to the health of people living near base stations, although there can be indirect adverse effects on their well-being
• An international standard for the assessment of SAR values from mobile phones should be adopted for use in the UK