Day 200 - 12 Dec 95 - Page 21


     
     1        mention of one of the epidemiological papers in final
     2        submissions, and I might be asked to draw a conclusion from
     3        that when that possible conclusion had not been put to
     4        Professor Crawford, and I expressed my unease about that.
     5        Has that changed?
     6
     7   MR. RAMPTON:  No.  If your Lordship is of the view that evidence
     8        of the possibility of causal relationship between diet and
     9        cancer is still a runner, then it has not changed, no.
    10
    11   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I mean, it relates at least, does it not, to
    12        the question of whether there can be said to be a very real
    13        risk that you will suffer cancer of the breast or bowel or
    14        heart disease as a result of a diet which is high in fat,
    15        sugar, animal products and salt, or whether there is
    16        merely, say, a theoretical risk which would not worry any
    17        reasonably robust person.
    18
    19   MR. RAMPTON:  It does relate to that.  As I say, if that is
    20        still a runner at the moment -- whether it still is at the
    21        end of the case remains to be seen -- and Professor
    22        Crawford has to come back, there is, in fact, further
    23        epidemiological documents which has emerged since Professor
    24        Crawford gave evidence which is freely available at the
    25        Government book shop in Holborn -- I forget the name; it is
    26        another of those grey books -- and it contains some
    27        material which is directly relevant to the question of how
    28        far does epidemiology carry one in this sort of enquiry.
    29        If Professor Crawford comes back, I shall certainly
    30        cross-examine him about it.
    31
    32   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  What I think you should do is, unless you
    33        have some objection in principle to it, to have copied the
    34        relevant papers.  I do not live in a cocoon.  I have
    35        already expressed an interest in these matters anyway.  If
    36        I see something about diet and degenerative disease in a
    37        broad sheet newspaper or a magazine, I tend to read it out
    38        of ordinary interest.
    39
    40        I know there have been appearances of a certain
    41        retrenchment, so far as that is concerned, but I cannot
    42        take that into consideration in this case, unless it is in
    43        evidence, which means if there are articles put to a
    44        witness because the articles themselves are not evidence.
    45
    46   MR. RAMPTON:  No.  I entirely agree with your Lordship, if I may
    47        say so.  I was not thinking of newspapers articles, but
    48        there has emerged certain recent evidence in relation to
    49        heart disease which is, to say the least, rather striking.
    50 
    51   MR. JUSTICE BELL:  I mean, my view at the moment -- I am not 
    52        beginning to give any kind of formal ruling on it -- is 
    53        that we have to have Mr. Fairgrieve continue his evidence,
    54        unless the Defendants stand up and volunteer and say:  "No,
    55        we do not want to ask Mr. Fairgrieve any more questions".
    56        We have to have Professor Crawford back for
    57        cross-examination during which you can put any new
    58        articles, having copied them in advance so that everyone
    59        has had a chance to read them.  The issue in my mind is
    60        what, if any, other witnesses need to be recalled beyond

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