All news on this page courtesy of the The Telegraph Newspaper, London, UK

26 February 1997

By Rachel Sylvester, Political Staff

ADVICE given to ministers about Gulf War Syndrome was seriously flawed and civil servants or military personnel could be culpable, a Ministry of Defence investigation has concluded.

A highly critical report by Sir Richard Mottram, the ministry's permanent under-secretary, to be published today, found wide-ranging "internal confusion" in the MoD about the use of harmful pesticides during the war against Saddam Hussein.

Mistakes were made about the extent to which organophosphates had been deployed in the Gulf, and civil servants had failed to pass on their knowledge in the appropriate way. "Information was neither assessed nor followed up properly," the report states. The document vindicates Nicholas Soames, the armed forces minister, who commissioned the inquiry. But it is very critical of MoD officials and military personnel. An internal inquiry now being held could lead to disciplinary proceedings against individua Mr Soames commissioned the report in December after he was forced to apologise to the House of Commons for misleading Parliament over the widespread use of the pesticides. Campaigners claim that these chemicals could be responsible for the syndrome.

Although the minister stressed that no deception had been intended, he admitted that MPs had been misinformed over the extent to which troops were exposed to the harmful chemicals. Sir Richard was asked to investigate why the wrong information had been g

They are likely to argue that public debate on the subject should be suspended until disciplinary proceedings are completed because they could prejudice their outcome. But some members of the committee plan to call on Mr Soames to take responsibility for "Ministers are trying to hide behind civil servants. We are going to be putting a lot of pressure on him to shoulder responsibility," one committee member said. "At the end of the day the minister is meant to be responsible, not another Teflon man."

David Clark, shadow defence spokesman, wrote to Mr Soames on Monday demanding that he announce the findings of the report on the floor of House. "If Nicholas Soames takes seriously his responsibilities he will come to the House of Commons to make a fully "Members of the Armed Forces feel betrayed and the public has a right to expect ministers to tell the truth to Parliament." The first complaints linked to the syndrome emerged in 1991 when veterans reported symptoms including nausea and spasms. Some sold Mr Soames announced a three-year research programme involving 18,000 personnel last year. It will try to find out whether Gulf veterans suffer more illnesses than would otherwise be expected and if their children are less healthy than they ought to be.