Politicians and celebrities have joined forces with survivors of Britain’s nuclear tests to ask the Prime Minister to deliver justice in his last week in Downing Street.
They have written Boris Johnson an open letter, urging him to decide whether to “turn his back on our national heroes” or honour them before the 70th anniversary next month of the UK’s first atomic bomb.
The PM met families affected by the Cold War radiation experiments in June, but with only days left in Downing Street has yet to make any announcement about the medal they asked him for.
Both his potential successors have said they support it - but no decision has been made, with officials on leave and all eyes on the leadership campaign.
Mirror editor Alison Phillips said: “It is imperative this medal is delivered quickly, because these veterans are over 80 and have complex health problems. The window is closing for this PM to make a real difference to their need for recognition.”
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, who met the veterans a year earlier than the PM and promised them his support, said: “It’s appalling that Britain’s nuclear test veterans and their families have not yet had justice after years of maltreatment, and I’m saddened that their long campaign is exceeding the life of so many of them.
“The PM has a very clear choice now: deliver on his promise to give real recognition ahead of the October 3 Plutonium Jubilee, or turn his back on our national heroes.”
* Add your name to the letter HERE
He added: “The country owes a huge debt of honour to these veterans. The PM must act to deliver the appreciation, respect and justice they deserve, and Labour will continue to support their campaign every step of the way.”
The medal committee has been given fresh evidence to help its decision. Government insiders have told the Mirror that they have been trying to “force” a medal through, but have met a brick wall of officialdom, made worse by Tory turmoil.
“All it takes is for Boris to give this his attention,” said one. “If he just asked the Queen it could be done in a week.”
The letter has been signed by dozens of MPs, peers, famous faces, and everyone who was at the meeting with the PM. They include Operation Grapple veteran John Morris, 85, who saw four nuclear explosions and told Johnson: “It's the ideal moment, Prime Minister, for you to look me in the eye and tell me, ‘you deserve a medal’. Or say, ‘sod off’.”
Nuclear descendants Steve Purse, Alan Owen, Laura Jackson, and Laura Morris have signed, along with Tory grandee Sir John Hayes and Labour’s Rebecca Long-Bailey, who secured the meeting between them.
Backing them are broadcaster Kirstie Allsopp, and comedians Al Murray, Rory Bremner and Mark Steel. Call The Midwife star Stephen McGann, and its scriptwriter, Heidi Thomas, also supported the call after a nuclear veteran featured in two series of their show.
McGann earlier likened the scandal to Hillsborough, and called on the PM to cut through the “Pooterish nonsense” that meant they were denied a medal.
Other supporters include shadow defence secretary John Healey, shadow attorney general Emily Thornberry, and SNP leader Ian Blackford, along with 47 other MPs from Labour, the SNP and Conservative Party, and the metro mayors Andy Burnham, Dan Jarvis and Steve Rotheram.
The veterans are also backed by Tory, Labour, and cross-bench peers Ruth Davidson, Shami Chakrabarti, John Hendy, Prem Sikka, Christine Blower, Pauline Bryan and Sayeeda Warsi.
Here is the letter in full...
"Dear Prime Minister,
In June this year you made history as the first Prime Minister to meet with Britain’s nuclear test veterans and their families, to look them in the eye and listen to their stories. You promised to deliver justice, and ordered your officials to resolve their long battle for official recognition.
It was hoped you could meet the campaigners again, to announce your decision on medallic recognition and a national service of commemoration at Westminster Abbey in the short-term, with further scientific research, educational provision, and war pension reform, considered in the longer-term.
But less than a month after veteran John Morris, his granddaughter Laura, and descendants Steve Purse, Alan Owen and Laura Jackson met you and your team in your Parliamentary office, you were forced to resign.
The meeting with which you made history is now at risk of being consigned to a footnote, another lost opportunity to end the longest-running scandal in our island story.
The new Prime Minister will be sworn in on September 5. As you will recall, the 70th anniversary of the first bomb test falls on October 3. While both contenders for your role have followed your lead in backing a medal and other recognition, this delay is proving costly for the veterans and their families.
Due to their age and complex health problems, one of these mistreated heroes dies, on average, every week. They die with the same anger and disappointment as those who went before them, the same rage you witnessed when John told you about the death of his baby Steven, the same sorrow of Laura who lost her father and brother to the effects of radiation, and the same fear Steve still feels for the health of his son Sascha.
That cloud must be lifted soon , and you have the power to make it happen today .
We implore you, in your final weeks in post, to make a decision that will deliver meaningful recognition in time for the Plutonium Jubilee. It will be supported by your successor, your party, both houses of Parliament, and the nation as a whole. It will mean everything to these families.
This could be the last, and finest, thing you can do in office as Prime Minister. The clock is ticking for the nuclear veterans, and we look to you for justice.
Yours sincerely,
* You can add your own name by clicking HERE
John Morris, nuclear veteran; Laura Morris, descendant; Alan Owen, descendant; Laura Jackson, descendant; Steve Purse, descendant; Jacqueline Purse, widow.
Rt Hon Sir John Hayes, MP for South Holland and The Deepings, Patron of the BNTVA; Rebecca Long-Bailey, MP for Salford and Eccles; Susie Boniface, journalist.
Christine Donne, widow; the family of Flt Lt Joe Pasquini; Alison Phillips, Editor, Daily Mirror; Ed McGrath, chairman of the British Nuclear Test Veterans Association; Ian Blackford MP, Leader of the SNP; John Healey MP, Shadow Defence Secretary; Rachel Hopkins MP, Shadow Minister (Defence); Emily Thornberry MP, Shadow Attorney General.
Stephanie Peacock, MP for Barnsley East, Shadow Minister for Media; Sharon Hodgson, MP for Washington and Sunderland West, Parliamentary Private Secretary to Keir Starmer; Andrew Gwynne, MP for Denton and Reddish, Shadow Minister for Public Health; Tan Dhesi, MP for Slough, Shadow Minister for Railways; Janet Daby, MP for Lewisham East, Parliamentary Private Secretary to David Lammy.
Kirstie Allsopp, broadcaster; Al Murray, historian and comedian; Rory Bremner, impressionist and comedian; Mark Steel, comedian and broadcaster; Stephen McGann, actor and author; Heidi Thomas, screenwriter.
Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester; Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of Liverpool; Dan Jarvis, MP for Barnsley Central and Mayor of South Yorkshire; Paul Dennett, City Mayor of Salford; Ruth Davidson, Baroness Davidson of Lundin Links; Sayeeda Warsi, Baroness Warsi; Shami Chakrabarti, Baroness Chakrabarti; Christine Blower, Baroness Blower; Pauline Bryan, Baroness Bryan of Partick; Prem Sikka, Baron Sikka; John Hendy QC, Baron Hendy
Tom Watson, former deputy leader of the Labour Party, former Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Veterans, and former MP for West Bromwich East.
Angela Eagle, MP for Wallasey; Carol Monaghan, MP for Glasgow North West; Emma Lewell-Buck, MP for South Shields; Mick Whitley, MP for Birkenhead; Kim Johnson, MP for Liverpool, Riverside; Cat Smith, MP for Lancaster and Fleetwood; Rt Hon Valerie Vaz, MP for Walsall South; John McDonnell, MP for Hayes and Harlington.
Judith Cummins, MP for Bradford South; Peter Dowd, MP for Bootle; Debbie Abrahams, MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth; Yasmin Qureshi, MP for Bolton South East; Allan Dorans, MP for Ayr, Carrick and Cumnock; Charlotte Nichols, MP for Warrington North; Marsha de Cordova, MP for Battersea; Mohammad Yasin, MP for Bedford and Kempston; Mary Foy, MP for City of Durham; Tony Lloyd, MP for Rochdale; Ian Lavery, MP for Wansbeck; Paula Barker, MP for Liverpool Wavertree.
Ben Bradshaw, MP for Exeter; David Duguid, MP for Banff and Buchan; Jon Trickett, MP for Hemsworth; Ian Byrne, MP for Liverpool, West Derby; Andy McDonald, MP for Middlesbrough; Claudia Webbe, MP for Leicester East; Clive Lewis, MP for Norwich South; Bell Ribeiro-Addy, MP for Streatham; Dawn Butler, MP for Brent Central; Diane Abbott, MP for Hackney North and Stoke Newington; Grahame Morris, MP for Easington; Nadia Whittome, MP for Nottingham East.
Jeremy Corbyn, MP for Islington North; Richard Burgon, MP for Leeds East; Kate Osamor, MP for Edmonton; Lloyd Russell-Moyle, MP for Brighton, Kemptown; Kate Osborne, MP for Jarrow; Emma Hardy, MP for Hull West and Hessle; Rachael Maskell, MP for York Central; Chris Bryant, MP for Rhondda; Liam Byrne, MP for Birmingham, Hodge Hill; Barry Gardiner, MP for Brent North; Dr Philippa Whitford, MP for Central Ayrshire; Sarah Champion, MP for Rotherham.
A spokesman for the PM said: "The Prime Minister met with several nuclear test veterans recently, and has asked ministers to explore how their dedication can be recognised. We remain committed to considering any new evidence."
