Airbase 'may be contaminated with mustard gas'

An airbase that is set to become home to almost 1,000 employees could be built on a site contaminated with mustard gas.

Investigations into radioactive contamination at RAF Kinloss in Moray are ongoing by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, but a new report has suggested mustard gas could also be present.

But the authorities are aware of the presence of the materials and a spokesman for the Ministry of Defence (MoD) insisted that the site is fit for its purpose.

"Our investigations to date suggest there is no indication of significant risk to public health or the environment associated with the past storage or disposal of chemical weapon agents in the UK," he said, adding the protection of human health and the environment is considered to be very important by the MoD.

The MoD dates back 40 years in its current form, but the organisation's history goes back many centuries to the time of Henry VII.