Protective Clothing: Birmingham City Council

(asked on 18th June 2020) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the accuracy of reports that Birmingham City Council was sent personal protective equipment (PPE) that was six years out of date; and whether his Department's policy is that date-expired PPE received by that Council is safe to use.


Answered by
Jo Churchill Portrait
Jo Churchill
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This question was answered on 17th July 2020

As part of the emergency personal protective equipment supply to support frontline services Birmingham City Council (BCC) accurately reported receiving 15,000 FFP3 masks with an expired date, via West Midlands & Warwickshire (WM&W) Local Resilience Forums (LRFs). It is correct that certification was not provided. Following reviewal however, WM&W LRFs were assured that the PPE was safe to use via a letter sent on 23 April. During the pandemic certain PPE items may have out-of-date, or relabelled ‘use by/expiration’ dates, but all issued products have passed stringent tests demonstrating their safety. During tests the PPE is exposed to extreme conditions for prolonged periods, to see how the product deteriorates. All items that are not up to standard are destroyed and not distributed.

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