After that we all settled down a bit and, over the Earl Grey, Henderson remarked that I must have been very happy with the draft of his report.
I assured him that I was delighted, absolutely delighted, and I complimented him on his hard work. He, with modesty – and truth – admitted that most of the hard work had been done by the FDA in Washington.
I asked him if he’d ever done a government report before. He said he hadn’t. So I explained that his name will be attached to it forever. THE HENDERSON REPORT.
‘A kind of immortality, really,’ I added.
He seemed pleased. He smiled, and said he’d never thought of it like that before.
Then I went straight for the jugular. ‘But,’ I said casually, ‘if anything were to go wrong . . .’ And I paused.
He was instantly perturbed. ‘Go wrong?’ His little academic eyes blinked behind his big academic hornrims.
‘I mean,’ I said gravely, ‘if metadioxin is not quite as safe as you say it is. It’s your career – this is very courageous of you.’
Professor Henderson was now very concerned. Courageous was manifestly the last thing he ever wanted to be. He was also puzzled, and not quite getting my drift. ‘I don’t understand,’ he said. ‘None of the standard tests on metadioxin show any evidence of toxicity.’
I paused for effect. Then: ‘None of the
I paused again, while he panicked silently.
‘What do you mean?’ he said in a high strangled voice that didn’t quite seem to belong to this tall fellow with a high forehead and big feet.
I got out my little notebook to refresh my memory. ‘Funnily enough,’ I explained, ‘I was just making a few notes in the train on the way up here. Of course, I’m not a biochemist, you understand, but I’m told that the FDA report leaves some important questions unanswered.’
He thought about this. ‘Well . . .’ he said finally, and stopped.
I went on: ‘And that some of the evidence is inconclusive, that some of the findings have been questioned, and the figures are open to other interpretations.’
Henderson tried to make sense of all this. Then he said: ‘But
I interrupted him. ‘Absolutely! And that different results might come from a wider and more detailed study over a longer time scale.’
‘Well, obviously . . .’ he began.
‘Yes,’ I said firmly. ‘You see. If something did go wrong – even in ten years’ time, a delayed effect – well, the press would go straight to your report. And if it turned out you’d done laboratory trials for a multinational drug company . . .’
He was appalled. ‘But that was fifteen years ago.’
‘Fourteen,’ I corrected him. (This immensely useful piece of information had been revealed by his file.) ‘And you know what the press are like – “No smoke without fire.” Even if there’s no real basis. Could be a millstone round your neck.’
I could see that Henderson was wavering, so I piled on the pressure.
‘The popular press would be merciless if anything
Henderson was quaking in his shoes. He was in a frightful state. ‘Yes, yes, well, I, er, I don’t know what to do. I mean. I can’t change the evidence. Metadioxin is a safe drug. The report has to say so.’
He looked at me, desperately. I carefully did not fall into the trap. I was not going to make the elementary mistake of telling him what to put in his independent report.
‘Quite,’ I agreed. ‘Quite. I can see you have no choice.’
And I left him.
As I strolled across the room to refill my cup of tea, I saw dear old Crichton slide into my chair and offer Henderson a buttered crumpet.
I knew what he was going to say. He was going to tell Henderson that it’s only the phrasing of the Conclusion that you have to worry about. That’s the only part the press ever reads.
At the moment it reads: ‘On existing evidence, the Committee can see no reason not to proceed.’
I’m sure Crichton will suggest some excellent alternative. And I’m equally sure that Henderson will take his advice.
Victory.
I got the final version of the Henderson Report today. It’s all exactly the same, but for the end paragraph, which has undergone the teeniest bit of redrafting.
I called Bernard at once, and told him to release the report to the press.
Then I cancelled all appointments for today, took a train to Liverpool where another protest meeting was due
