Boris Johnson used his last day in office to demand a medal for Britain’s nuclear test veterans.
He also promised funds for a national commemoration of the Plutonium Jubilee next month, and said the country’s most mistreated heroes had created a “formidable shield” which kept many millions of people safe.
In an open letter to all those affected by the Cold War radiation experiments which knowingly and intentionally exposed thousands of servicemen to nuclear fallout, he offered his “profound thanks” but stopped short of the apology veterans demanded.
“You forged and perfected our country’s protective shield and then made certain that it worked,” he said. “Today, 67 million people in the UK - and our NATO allies - live in the safety that you helped to provide.”
He went on: “I was privileged to be the first PM to meet some of you in person. Hearing your accounts firsthand, I’m determined that your achievements will never be forgotten.”
He said it was his "firm belief" they deserved a medal, and "this work is now in train". He finished by saying "on behalf of all those millions, let me offer my profound thanks for your part in keeping us safe".
It followed his historic meeting with veterans in June, when as part of the Mirror’s Look Me In The Eye campaign we took a group of those affected by the tests to Westminster.
John Morris, 85, of Rochdale, had banged his fist on the PM’s desk in his Parliamentary office and told him to deliver a medal “or tell me to sod off”. Yesterday, he said: “This has been a long time coming, I’ve been fighting for this since I was about 26 and my son Steven died in his cot.
“It was clear in our meeting that Boris was genuinely moved and knew very little about the sacrifices so many people made. This is down to the Mirror’s total dedication to our cause, over many years, and the Look Me In The Eye campaign which has been so powerful.”
Labour’s Rebecca Long-Bailey, who first demanded the PM meet them, said it was a “positive last act” but added: “It is now incumbent on the new PM to recognise the pain and suffering of these veterans and their families have been through and urgently ensure that calls for medallic recognition, support and research are met. These men gave their all to protect us, it is high time we honoured and supported them and their families like other countries have already done.”
Shadow Defence Secretary John Healey, who with Keir Starmer met the veterans last year, said: "This is an important step forward for the campaign to ensure our nuclear test veterans receive the recognition they deserve for their service to our country. Labour has been proud to support the Look Me In The Eye campaign. Now we need the new PM to deliver on these promises."
* Add your name to the medal petition HERE
The Mirror can reveal that Johnson was so determined to deliver justice that, on the day he resigned, he met Minister for Veterans Affairs Johnny Mercer, and Tory grandee Sir John Hayes together in Downing Street, and told them to “get it done”.
Mercer said: “This announcement today is hugely significant and reflects the PM's personal commitment to veterans which has gone above and beyond many of his predecessors. There is clearly more to do, and we are doing all we can particularly around medallic recognition which I know is so important to our nuclear test veterans. I hope to continue this work under a new PM. They deserve it.”
Sir John, who has several constituents affected by the tests, said: “In our meeting with Boris, the veterans made a huge impression and he’s acknowledging their legacy must be protected, that we must act and commemorate these men and their families. It’s not yet enough - there is more to do - but I’m hopeful that the new PM, hearing what Boris has said and the clear message from the veterans, will be able to secure it.”
He added: "I regard this as one of the key aims of my Parliamentary work, and am absolutely determined to secure this medal."
Although the PM did not directly order a gong, he made it clear he wants one - and such pressure has, in the past, ensured the official Honours and Decorations Committee, which is supposed to be independent of government, delivered it.
It also makes it politically difficult for his successor not to demand the same. Liz Truss has already signalled her support for both a medal, and reformed war pensions, but Johnson's letter is likely to add further internal pressure.
A No10 insider said: "Hopefully momentum is now too great for the next administration to resist medallic recognition."
A fresh application by the Mirror and Labrats was submitted after the June meeting. A final decision by the main honours committee, which reports to the Queen, is expected at the end of this month.
The Mirror has campaigned for recognition of the veterans since the 1980s and, after a medal bid in 2018 was rejected, we demanded politicians meet veterans in person to hear what had befallen them.
After the meeting, civil servants and the PM’s close advisers worked up a series of packages to deliver the veterans’ demands for pensions, genetic research, education packages for schools, a medal, and commemoration. But the PM's resignation, which came within weeks, left it in peril. On Friday, officials had no idea if the PM would do anything before he left office, and the Monday morning announcement took some by surprise.
Alan Owen, whose dad Ron served at Operation Dominic, when UK troops were used in tests of US weapons totalling 38 megatons, was also in the meeting as founder of campaign group Labrats. He said: “Eighteen months ago, we had nothing. We had letters refusing to meet with us. To be here now is all down to the Look Me In The Eye campaign, and it's the best we've ever had. It's brilliant, but it's not enough, and we’re not going away.”
