The Independent

Civil servants told: Treat sick soldiers as 'political' cases

Veterans react with anger after documents reveal claims cases can be dropped or sidelined to avoid embarrassing ministers

By Steve Boggan

31 May 2001 - Civil servants are being instructed to treat victims of Gulf War Syndrome, depleted uranium poisoning and nuclear testing as "political" when assessing applications for war pensions.

Internal War Pensions Agency documents passed to The Independent suggest that applicants are not being treated on their merits, but on how politically sensitive their illnesses are to the Government. Their applications could thus be stalled or sidelined at the whim of ministers.

War veterans reacted with fury yesterday at seeing in print what they had long suspected. Ray Bristow, a former deputy chairman of the National Gulf Veterans and Families' Association, described the evidence ­ sent to him secretly ­ as "despicable".

Mr Bristow, 43, who has a catalogue of debilitating illnesses he believes were caused by exposure to depleted uranium and to vaccines and tablets he was given during the Gulf War, has been diagnosed recently with a lymphoma cancer.

He said: "This means that no matter how ill you are and no matter how much evidence and medical back-up you have, your case can be halted once it looks as if it could embarrass ministers. It's outrageous."

The evidence comes from Part Five of a procedures manual used for guidance by war pensions assessors. Under the title "Entitlement Considerations", paragraph 50054 advises: "For the most part, the compulsions [causes of injuries or illnesses] contended are fairly standard, eg stress and strain, adverse weather conditions, exposure to military noise etc.

"Sometimes the contentions may have political overtones. Some examples are exposure to chemicals at Porton Down, radiation in nuclear tests, organophosphates, depleted uranium, Nerve Agent Pre-treatment Set (NAPS) tablets and vaccinations in the Gulf War etc. If you are at all concerned that there may be political sensitivities, please discuss the case with your executive case worker.

"If necessary, the case may be referred for policy advice."
Steve Webb, the Liberal Democrats' social security spokesman, described the practice as "scandalous". He said: "Once you enter into the benefits system, there are key sets of regulations set down that should ensure you are treated on your merits. The idea that there could be political interference in those processes is a disgrace.

"This is improper interference in the cases of people who have fought for their country and are entitled to fair treatment. As soon as [Parliament] gets back, this is an issue we will be raising on the floor of the House [of Commons]."

Mr Bristow, like thousands of other veterans, suffers from a mixture of illnesses not recognised collectively as a syndrome by the MoD. They include impaired memory, speech, vision and hearing, high blood pressure, fits, chronic fatigue syndrome, involuntary muscle spasms, post traumatic stress disorder, cerebral hyper profusion, irritable bowel syndrome and fibromyalgia (a musculoskeletal pain and fatigue disorder).

Three American specialists have diagnosed Gulf War Syndrome (GWS) in him, a Canadian specialist found 100 times the normal amount of uranium in his urine, and NHS practitioners have acknowledged he has GWS. But the Ministry of Defence will not.

Mr Bristow said: "I was an operating theatre technician and in the
Territorial Army so I decided to volunteer for the Gulf War with the Royal Army Medical Corps. I knew I might become a casualty, but not from my own side. I don't want compensation. I simply want the war pension I'm entitled to, and an apology wouldn't go amiss."

The Department of Social Security, which administers the War Pensions Agency, said it was unable to comment "because there is an election on".

About 5,000 shells containing about 50,000lb of depleted uranium were fired by the United States alone in the Gulf, according to an Atomic Energy Authority assessment leaked to the Gulf Veterans Association this year. Mark McGhee, a partner with Linder Myers solicitors in Manchester, is representing up to 300 of 2,000 possible Gulf War claimants. He said he was "astonished" by the agency's guidance.

"I have never, ever come across a document like this, giving such unusual advice on policy, and I do not understand what it can mean when it says claims can be 'political'," he said. "It certainly causes me grave concern. It would be something I would like to have in my possession when representing individuals at pension tribunals. I would want to get to the bottom of what this policy is and what is behind it."

Mr McGhee said that, as far as he knew, not one soldier returning from the Gulf with the reported panoply of illnesses had been granted a 100 per cent war pension on the basis of what, in America, was recognised as Gulf War Syndrome.