On Wednesday and Thursday this week, representatives met with MP's and Ministers to discuss the continued quest for truth and justice. A series of meetings and a drop-in session organised by Rebecca Long-Bailey were on the agenda.
Wednesday 11th September
Meeting with Andrew Bowie MP - Shadow Veterans Minister
Our first engagement was with Andrew Bowie MP, the meeting was attended by Brian Unthank (Operation Grapple veteran), Susie Boniface and Alan Owen.
(Picture courtesy of Susie Boniface)
We discussed the current situation and how Andrew can help us to ensure that the current government can be held to account and our quest for a public inquiry can be implemented. Andrew was very receptive to Brian's story and we presented him with evidence of the interference in the first NRPB study by the Ministry of Defence.
We are very thankful to Andrew for his time to meet with us, listen to us and to support us going forward.
Drop In Session - organised by Rebecca Long-Bailey MP
The meeting with Andrew Bowie MP was followed by a drop-in session, chaired by Rebecca Long-Bailey MP, 20+ MP's attended the session and listened to the veterans and campaigners. The main partied were represented, all fully supporting the veterans. Many new MP's were present, representing veterans and descendants.
Brian Unthank, Bryan Jarvis and Dave Whyte represented the veterans at the session, discussing their time at the tests and how their lives have been affected since their participation. Dave Whyte also presented the attendees with a detailed document on his struggles.
(Picture courtesy of Daniel Everitt-Lock)
The MP's were again very supportive and comparisons were made to the other scandals that have been in the public domain (Hillsborough, Post Office, Grenfell, Infected Blood etc.), ours being the longest running scandal.
We would like to thank everyone who attended the event and a special thank you to Rebecca Long-Bailey MP and her team for organising the session.
Meeting with Sir John Hayes MP
Following the meeting, representatives met with Sir John Hayes and a refreshing tea was held in the Houses of Parliament. This meeting was held on the late Doug Hern's birthday and we remembered him in a place where he fought for decades.
(Picture courtesy of Daniel Everitt-Lock)
The meetings were very productive, the support was very welcoming from all parties.
Filming by Daniel Everitt-Lock
After the meetings, further work was undertaken by the veterans and Alan, with further filming by Daniel Everitt-Lock for his upcoming documentary.
After a long, but productive day the veterans could stand down. They had been incredible.
Thursday 12th September
Meeting with Al Carns MP (Veterans Minister) and Emma Lewell-Buck MP
Susie Boniface and Alan Owen met with Al Carns MP (Veterans Minister) and Emma Lewell-Buck MP to discuss the engagement by the new Labour government since they had been elected.
The meeting was held in the MOD Main Office with representation from the Office for Veterans Affairs and the Ministry of Defence. A very productive discussion was held, with documentary evidence provided to the new Minister and a plan of action agreed. We presented our points and an open discussion was held. The new Minister was very receptive to us and we thank him for his time and his willingness to look in depth at our points.
The Minister will be providing a video message to the participants of the All-Tests Reunion.
A follow up meeting was held with Emma Lewell-Buck MP after the meeting in Portcullis House.
(Picture courtesy of Emma Lewell-Buck MP)
We thank Emma for continuing to fight for us in Parliament, alongside Rebecca and Sir John and many other MP's who understand that the this scandal must end very soon. We thank them both for their messages of support for the All-Tests Reunion.
Conclusion
Is is very important that we continue to have cross party support across Parliament. These meetings and sessions are extremely important to ensure that the veterans are never forgotten and that we continue to be included in discussions and that the Veterans Minister is fully aware of the issues and that our evidence is handed directly to Ministers.
For everyone who is supporting us, we thank you.
The campaigning doesn't stop though, the Daily Mirror and Susie Boniface are holding a fringe event at the Labour Party Conference on Tuesday 24th. Steve Purse, John Morris, Andy Burnham and Rachel Hopkins MP are amongst the panellists. It will be streamed live on the Daily Mirror social media feeds.
If wish to support us, you can join for free as an Associate Member by visiting www.labrats.international/joinus. We can offer free membership following a grant from the Veterans Foundation.
If you would like to help, write to your MP with the link to this blog and thank them for their support if they attended, and if they didn't attend, ask them why not.
We are also looking for any veterans or family members in Wokingham. If your MP is Clive Jones, he would like to hear from you.
Next week is our Annual Reunion at Weston Super-Mare and we are welcoming 120 people for a week long reunion. For everyone who is attending, we will see you on Monday.
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