QC to outline N-plant organ probe

Michael Redfern QC will look at 65 reported cases where tissue was removed, apparently without the consent of the families.

Most of the workers were employed at Sellafield in Cumbria and all died between 1962 and 1991.

The investigation will also cover plants in Harwell, Oxfordshire, and Aldermaston, Berkshire, after nuclear authorities said they believed similar tests on post-mortem tissues were carried out there and "possibly other sites".

Mr Redfern was chosen by the Government to conduct the independent investigation because of his specialist experience in the field.

His brief will be to determine who ordered the tests on the body tissues, why the tests were conducted and to find out whether consent was obtained from relatives.

In 2000 he led the inquiry into the removal of organs from children at the Alder Hey Children's Hospital in Liverpool, which concluded a year later that a pathologist had "systematically stripped" organs from dead children.

Ministers moved quickly to appoint Mr Redfern after feelings of "shock and outrage" were expressed over the disclosure tissue was taken from individuals and then analysed for the radionuclide content of organs. A radionuclide is an unstable form of an element that can decay and give off radiation.

A special helpline was set up to take calls from concerned families and friends in the wake of the Commons announcement.

Mr Redfern will today outline the purpose of Redfern Inquiry into Human Tissue Analysis in UK Nuclear Facilities and how it will develop, including his plans for taking evidence from relatives and agencies involved.