Misconduct in Public Office
- Invisible Enemy
- 1 day ago
- 3 min read
The Ministry of Defence has been handed a 500-page dossier of evidence collated by Susie Boniface during the three-year investigation into the Nuked Blood Scandal. Collated from various sources, this dossier contains information that forms the basis of the criminal complaint.
It has been described as a 'ticking time bomb' for the Ministry of Defence. The Labour government were given an initial six months to investigate the missing medical records. Unfortunately, following a meeting with the Veterans' Minister in March, where he requested another six months, the campaign team could wait no longer.
Metro Mayor Andy Burnham called the scandal 'the greatest injustice of them all'. He also warned other politicians and officials that they risked becoming complicit if they did not act.
"It's incumbent upon every single person in public office who is rightly
showing respect today for those who served our country to now
step forward, and get truth and justice for our nuclear test veterans.
Because if you don't do that as a country, then the words that we
speak about our veterans will forever be hollow words."
The dossier and campaign has been spearheaded by Susie Boniface of the Daily Mirror. https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/nuked-blood-met-police-handed-35200486
This is a major step forward for the campaign, the Met Police must now analyse the 500-page dossier of information and decide on the action to take.
The dossier contains witness statements submitted on behalf of the Ministry of Defence to the High Court and Court of Appeal, Freedom of Information admissions, medical records and historic documents that were hidden from the public.
The list of potential witnesses includes veterans, descendants, former and current ministers, and senior officials at the Ministry of Defence, Atomic Weapons Establishment, and Government Legal Department.
It also states that the High Court was given false information in 2008, and Parliament misled in 2018.
The crime of misconduct carries a maximum life sentence for any public official who has acted unlawfully and caused harm to someone as a result.
In the Mirror Article, responses were given by the Met Police, the Ministry of Defence and the Government Legal Department:
Met Police - "A report was submitted to the Met Police on Wednesday, 7 May relating to non-recent allegations against a public body. The report is currently being assessed to determine the most appropriate course of action. We have not launched any investigation at this stage."
Ministry of Defence: "We refute these unsubstantiated claims, and ministers and officials acted properly based on the evidence available to them at the time. We recognise the huge contribution that nuclear test veterans have made to national security. The Minister for Veterans and People has commissioned officials to look seriously into unresolved questions regarding medical records as a priority, and this is now underway. This work will be comprehensive, and it will enable us to better understand what information the department holds in relation to the medical testing of service personnel who took part in the UK nuclear weapons tests."
Government Legal Department: "The GLD is, and always has been, committed to upholding the rule of law and maintaining the highest professional standards. That includes the way in which it represents government departments in litigation. We strongly refute any claims of misconduct and consider this a serious and unsubstantiated allegation."
Conclusion
The number of British and Commonwealth Nuclear Veterans is reducing every day, the average age is now 86, and we cannot wait any longer. The evidence is now overwhelming of denial, cover-ups and senior officials misleading Parliament. We are eagerly awaiting the release of the Merlin Database, with discussions regarding the method of release and a timetable for each tranche. We are meeting with the Office for Veterans Affairs every month, and they have been very responsive to our issues.
However, Ministers have not kept their promises to us, especially the Prime Minister and the Defence Secretary, who have not responded to any of our requests for a meeting to discuss this extremely important issue. Veterans Minister Al Carns gave us 45 minutes of his time at the last meeting, the veterans deserve more.
How many more nuclear veterans have to die before this scandal is addressed? No one wanted to lodge this criminal complaint, the offer for talks, a one year fast track inquiry were all offered and denied by the UK Government; we are ready and waiting to meet the Prime Minister and the Defence Secretary, but it seems that their promises to us in opposition are hollow ones, just as every government before them.
These veterans deserve justice, they deserve their apology. The families of those who have passed deserve justice.
We would like to thank everyone involved in the campaign for their dedication, commitment and for their continuing support.