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By Heather McLean, 18 July 2002 16:28

NEWS Police officers taking part in a trial of new radio handsets claim they are suffering health problems. The Airwave handsets are supplied by Motorola on a service managed by telco 02. Lancashire Constabulary officers taking part in the trial have complained of migraines, sleeplessness and a lack of concentration. Almost 200 police officers, including a further 20 from North Yorkshire police who are also involved in the trial, said they had suffered ill health caused by the Airwave handsets. David Brindle, director of corporate services for the Lancashire Constabulary, brushed off police officers' concerns over their health. He said: "We are aware that some officers believe they have experienced symptoms of ill health as a direct result of using their new radios. However, all the available evidence and research indicates that the new radios are not harmful to health." Airwave works on the Tetra radio protocol (Terrestrial Trunked Radio) which transmits signals on the 17.6Hz frequency. Some scientist fear Tetra's radio frequency is dangerously close to the 16Hz rate that brain pulses travel on. The Independent Expert Group on Mobile Phones (IEGMP) concluded as a result of extensive research into Tetra in May 2000 that "as a precautionary measure, amplitude modulation around 16Hz should be avoided, if possible, in future developments in signal coding". But a spokeswoman for Motorola defended the equipment maker's position. She said: "When some of this speculation came about we took it seriously. We advised all forces with reports of ill health to tell officers to see their GPs, but we have not received any reports from health and safety officers at the police departments in question. "We are taking every step available to ensure that our products are well within the standards set by international and industry bodies." The Home Office is setting up health monitoring studies in response to the police officers' complaints and is running health workshops to advise police on the Tetra system. A spokeswoman from the Home Office said: "It is unlikely that the Tetra system poses any risk to the health of its users. These officers have complained of symptoms but are not off work sick, so these problems can't be directly attributed to Airwave." 02 intends to roll its Airwave service out to all emergency services within the UK on the request of the government for a single standard radio system. Airwave offers improved voice quality, better coverage and higher levels of encryption than existing systems.