Despite assurances to veterans of the Northern Ireland Troubles, politicians have let them down

On Monday, the Defence Secretary Ben Wallace confirmed to MPs that the Veterans Protections Bill, due to be put before parliament today, will not cover veterans who served in Northern Ireland during the Troubles.

This is despite public assurances by politicians to the contrary.

Mr Hutchings and his legal team repeatedly expressed concerns to the Ministry of Defence, the Northern Ireland Office (NIO) and the Veterans Parliamentary Support Group (VSG), chaired by Sir Iain Duncan Smith, that Northern Ireland veterans would be excluded but were ignored.

In response to Mr Hutchings’ legal team, Sir Iain dismissed their concerns and assured them matters were in hand by writing: “The primary mission of the Veterans Support Group is to scrutinise the forthcoming legislation in detail and, if necessary amend it, in order to ensure that Northern Ireland Veterans who served on Operation Banner during the Troubles are suitably protected against politically motivated prosecutions”.

Requests by Mr Hutchings for information from and meetings with the NIO have been ignored.

Mr Hutchings intends to proceed with his public law challenge against the NIO for the discriminatory treatment of veterans by the Northern Ireland criminal justice system.

Meanwhile, despite Mr Hutchings being 78-years-old and dying of renal failure and being advised by the British government to self-isolate because of COVID-19, a Northern Ireland judge has expressed the view that his trial should continue regardless, despite Mr Hutchings not being able to attend in person.

While politicians have kept telling veterans not to worry, trust in them, all is in hand, it is clear that they cannot do anything to help the likes of Mr Hutchings and others. Instead of admitting this they have delayed matters until it may be too late, dismissed his concerns and refused to meet with his representatives to try and resolve this issue. The government and its politicians have failed them. Now it appears inevitable that this matter will have to be adjudicated by the courts. It may be too late for Dennis but he hopes he can act in time to ensure others like him don’t suffer the same ordeal.

Matt Jury,

Lawyer, McCue and Partners, London