Day 200 - 12 Dec 95 - Page 23
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2 MR. RAMPTON: Yes, that is right.
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4 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Shall we leave it there for the moment? Is
5 there anything you want to say now?
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7 MS. STEEL: Yes.
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9 MR. JUSTICE BELL: You are under no pressure to say anything
10 now, but anything you wish to say now, please do, and
11 I would like to hear from you on Friday when you have had
12 an opportunity to consider what has been said today.
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14 MS. STEEL: All right. Mr. Morris, I think, wants to say
15 something anyway, but I just want to say we do not accept
16 any of what Mr. Rampton's interpretation is. As far we are
17 concerned, we think he is just desperate to try to stop any
18 more evidence being heard on this subject because he knows
19 it is damaging for his clients.
20
21 We have said continuously that we want to call Jane Brophey
22 and we still wish to call Jane Brophey. The only reason
23 she was not called was because the Plaintiffs wanted to
24 change their meaning halfway through the case. So we did
25 not want to call her until after that was done. Then the
26 whole nutrition issue got shunted back.
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28 We will be recalling Professor Crawford, obviously, because
29 we did not finish his evidence. We have not, since your
30 ruling on the meaning, really had time to consider our
31 position as regards Dr. Arnott and Dr. Wheelock.
32 Obviously, we will have to think about that.
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34 I just wanted to ask actually about the position with heart
35 disease now. The admission that there is, do we need to
36 call evidence on the extent of the risk of heart disease?
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38 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Quite frankly, you know I want to help you to
39 the extent that you do not overlook some point which may be
40 significant to me and, on the other hand, I hesitate to
41 give you advice as to what you should and should not do if
42 only because if it turns out against your interests I would
43 not want to feel responsible. Might I suggest that you
44 have to grapple with the fact that my meaning refers to the
45 very real risk that you will suffer cancer.
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47 MS. STEEL: Yes.
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49 MR. JUSTICE BELL: So, my present view is that the admission
50 which has been made about an association between diet high
51 in fat etc., and heart disease cannot be taken as any kind
52 of admission of a very real risk.
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54 MS. STEEL: It was extended to be a causal thing.
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56 MR. JUSTICE BELL: Yes, I appreciate that but there is a
57 difference. It does not, to my mind, amount to an
58 admission of very real risk.
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60 MS. STEEL: So the position is that we should serve a notice to
