Mark Todd

A former National Service veteran has told how he was misled into taking part in nerve gas tests at Porton Down military research centre.

Derek Buswell (76), of Shelton Lock, volunteered to help with research at the centre, in Wiltshire, in January 1951 whilst he was doing his National Service with the RAF.

He claims that he was told that they were testing "something like tear gas". In fact, Mr Buswell was part of experiments to develop and test different nerve gases.

For 10 years, Mr Buswell co-operated with Wiltshire Police, Oxford University and two firms of solicitors who were all looking into claims that the servicemen were conned and suffered health problems as a consequence of the experiments.

However, he decided not to sign up to the case led by solicitors Thompson, Snell and Passmore because he was told that he would have to pay costly fees if the case failed.

Earlier this year, the Government announced that it would pay £8,300 to each of the 369 veterans who pursued the group legal action. This money was awarded without an admission of liability by the Ministry of Defence.

Mr Buswell feels it is unfair that himself and the other veterans who did not originally claim are left with nothing. He has now enlisted the help of Mark, who has asked a question in Parliament and has yet to receive a reply.

Mark said: "The evidence suggests that service personnel were used as unwitting guinea pigs. As with the atomic weapons tests in which I also have a constituent participant, the whole approach suggests neither candour nor a proper duty of care to those taking part. The Ministry has now apologised without accepting formal liability and offered an ex-gratia sum to participants. In response to my question the minister responsible is writing to me to clarify how this decision affects people like Mr Buswell. The obvious answer should be that all those who can establish that they took part in these experiments should be treated equally. It shouldn’t depend on whether you employed a solicitor to pursue the matter. I hope that is what I will hear."