§ Mr. HaynesTo ask the Secretary of State for Defence what recent representations he has received about providing compensation for ex-service personnel who took part in the nuclear testing programme.
§ Mr. Archie HamiltonA number of representations have been made by right hon. and hon. Members and by others regarding compensation for participants in the United Kingdom's nuclear weapons test programme. As the Government have made clear on many occasions, we would be ready to pay compensation wherever the Crown's legal liability was established and where there was firm evidence to show that, on a balance of probabilities, ex-service personnel had suffered ill health as a result of exposure to radiation during the course of their duties as members of the armed forces.