Allegations that Ministry of Defence officials illegally covered up evidence of nuclear experiments on troops are now being assessed by the Met Police
Two police forces are now assessing evidence of an alleged criminal cover-up by the Ministry of Defence.
The Met has joined Thames Valley Police in confirming a major crime review is under way into the Nuked Blood Scandal, which the Mirror first exposed in 2022.
Commander Ella Marriott of the Met’s Central Specialist Crime Unit said in a letter: “It is in everyone’s best interest that the police force with jurisdiction over the matter takes forward the investigation without delay… we can confirm that discussions with TVP regarding the progression of this case are ongoing.”
It comes a week after we revealed the names of Boris Johnson and Keir Starmer, along with serving government officials, are on a list of potential witnesses handed to the police. At first the Met had refused to investigate, saying it was not in their patch, but now both forces are in talks about how best to do so.
Alan Owen of nuclear veteran campaign group LABRATS said: “The MoD subjected its own troops to unethical radiation experiments, then hid the results and told courts and judges that it never happened.
“The only way to get the whole truth is with an official police investigation, because there are people alive today with some serious questions to answer.”
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The allegations centre on the discovery at the Atomic Weapons Establishment of thousands of documents about a blood testing programme conducted on troops stationed at Cold War nuclear weapons tests.
They had been classified behind national security on the grounds of nuclear proliferation and counter-terrorism, but after Parliament forced a partial release the records were found to contain orders, discussions, and results of blood and urine testing.
Veterans have found chunks of their medical records are missing the vital monitoring data. and have launched a lawsuit as well as lodging a criminal complaint of misconduct in public office.
Steve Purse, who has spent three years battling to get his father David’s blood test results following toxic bomb trigger trials in Maralinga, Australia, said: “After being ignored for so long it is good to know the police are taking it seriously. But even after families have established a lawful right to see these files the MoD is still throwing up road blocks. Ministers need to intervene and overrule the bureaucrats who are getting this badly wrong.”
Mr Johnson was the first person in public life to be informed of the scandal, during a meeting in his Parliamentary office in 2022. His representatives have declined to comment on whether he will help the police if asked to do so.
Tory ministers, Mr Starmer, and serving members of the government have also been named in a 500-page dossier of evidence, along with lawyers who assured judges that no documents were hidden.
A government spokesman said officials acted properly, “based on evidence available to them at the time”.
He added: “These claims are false and there is no evidence to back this up. The Minister for Veterans and People has commissioned officials to look seriously into unresolved questions regarding medical records as a priority. This comprehensive work is underway and will enable us to better understand what information the department holds in relation to the medical testing of service personnel who took part in the UK nuclear weapons tests.”