DAVID Cameron today launches an all-out assault on tank-chasing lawyers to
end their pursuit of hero troops for good.
The number of often weak claims against veterans of Iraq and other conflicts
have now spiralled into “an industry” that “has got to end”,
the PM insists.
The Sun can reveal he has ordered a barrage of major reforms to crack down on
greedy firms.
Mr Cameron announces the sweeping action to mark The Sun’s annual Millies
awards, when the nation honours the sacrifices of its men and women in
uniform.
It comes after weeks of public uproar over the controversial Iraq Historical
Allegations Team – dubbed a money-grabbing witch hunt by critics – which has
been bombarded with allegations filed by the law firms.
Speaking exclusively to The Sun, the PM said: “It’s clear that there is now an
industry trying to profit from spurious claims lodged against our brave
servicemen and women.
“It’s unacceptable and no way to treat the people who risk their lives to keep
our country safe. It has got to end.
“So I have tasked the National Security Council that I chair to produce a
comprehensive plan to stamp out this industry.”
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Mr Cameron added: “Our armed forces are rightly held to the highest standards.
“But I want our troops to know that when they get home from action overseas
this Government will protect them from being hounded by lawyers over claims
that are totally without foundation.”
The PM has ordered the National Security Council to:
– Draw up a time limit on claims so they must be filed within
only a few years of the allegation happening, thereby making any new ones
from Iraq now impossible after British forces left in 2009,
– Create tough new penalties for law firms who chance their arm
by filing spurious claims,
– Ban dodgy ‘no win no fee’ arrangements when the claims focus on
UK troops,
– Speed up the 12 months UK residency test for anyone to lodge a
claim with legal aid and enforce it in a matter of weeks.
No10 has ruled out shutting down IHAT, to the disappointment of campaigners,
top brass and Tory MPs.
Government lawyers have warned the PM that scrapping it completely would mean
the 1,100 complaints it is now pursuing would be re-lodged in the
International Criminal Court in The Hague – an even worse fate for the
veterans.
The law firms have also swamped the inquiry with complaints and court threats,
tying them up in a mountain of red tape.
But Downing Street officials believe the actions unveiled today will have a
powerful knock-on effect by reducing IHAT’s case load.
It can also be revealed that Defence Secretary Michael Fallon has been
instructed to sue law firms involved in the notorious al-Sweady Inquiry to
recover £31m of taxpayers’ cash wasted on it.
The five-year-long probe into a battle in Iraq collapsed when it emerged
controversial legal firm Leigh Day failed to disclose key documents that
proved alleged innocent victims were actually enemy insurgents.
The Legal Aid Agency has also been asked to look at banning any firm from
access to state cash while they are under suspicion of foul practice.
A No.10 source added: “It would be unprecedented for the Government to sue a
law firm in this way – but if they are found to have acted improperly, then
it will be the right thing to do.
“The public, and the soldiers who have been subject to malicious lies, would
expect nothing less.”
After their successes in Iraq, tank-chasing lawyers are also trying to drum up
fresh claims from other conflicts in past decades – especially Afghanistan
and Northern Ireland.
The Iraq Historical Accusations Team was started up in March 2010, in one of
Labour Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s last acts in power.
But very loose wording has allowed lawyers to exploit it with a vast series of
personal injury claims, based on spurious evidence many years after the
event.
Celebs and politicians will again gather at London’s Guildhall today to honour
the Forces’ heroes during 2015.