
The EU ban on traditional lightbulbs will put people's health at risk, warns UKIP MEP Godfrey Bloom.
The ban on traditional light bulbs begins on September 1 with 100-watt bulbs being removed from shelves and the rest will be phased out by 2012.
Mr Bloom said: "They have had no regard for people's right to choose and absolutely no concern for the terrible impact this will have on those with light-sensitive health conditions.
"Time and time again we watch with despair as the EU churns out legislation with unintended consequences - and here we go again.
"We are being bullied into this in the name of climate change but what about the mercury contained in the new energy saving bulbs. I have no doubt that the issue of their disposal has not been given proper consideration."
People who are light sensitive suffer because of the emission of ultraviolet and the blue part of the visible spectrum. Tests by the Health Protection Agency has shown that the new compact fluoresent bulbs (CFLs) emit both.
"These types of bulbs should carry a health warning similar to cigarettes," said Mr Bloom, MEP for Yorkshire and North Lincolnshire.
"A whole range of illnesses are involved including lupus, psoriasis, eczema, porphyria, migraines, ME, epilepsy and autism.
"I have been told that adverse effects include nausea, burning sensations, rashes, lethargy, swollen joints, anxiety and genetic damage.
"Nearly all public buildings, including hospitals, and the majority of workplaces are lit with these types of lights which means that sufferers are unable to live a normal life.
"And if a proposal to change street lighting from amber sodium to white fluorescent tubes goes ahead it will mean sufferers will be unable to go out in the evening. This will make them prisoners in their own home.
"There maybe only a small percentage of the population affected but they have the same rights as anybody else under the Disability Discrimination Act and are entitled to access to any public building."


