Gulf War veteran family still waiting for justice

11:20am Thursday 21st February 2008

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THE family of York Gulf War veteran Terry Walker are still waiting to hear whether they have won their latest battle for justice.

His parents, Ted and Hazel Walker, from Wheldrake, have been pressing since last autumn for an inquest to look fully into the part played by Gulf War syndrome in their son's death.

The former lance corporal died aged 48 last spring, leaving two children, after complications set in following a heart transplant operation at Newcastle.

The Newcastle Coroner David Mitford told the Walkers last autumn that he intended the hearing to examine only the failure of the operation.

He said in a letter that he did not feel issues of Gulf War syndrome should properly arise as part of the inquest proceedings.

The Walkers said they believed Terry only needed the operation because of years of ill health and stress caused by the condition, and they wanted medical witnesses to be called to speak about it.

They were convinced that his exposure to radiation and inoculations in the Gulf War was the root cause of his death.

The coroner agreed in December to adjourn the hearing at the eleventh hour, following pleas by the Walkers for its nature and scope to be expanded.

Mrs Walker said today that they had still not heard whether the coroner had agreed to widen the scope of the inquest, which she understood was now due to be held in May.

The Press launched its Justice For Terry campaign last summer, after revealing that Terry's war pension had been cut by 60 per cent before his death.

His parents believed the stress caused by this had been a factor behind him suffering a heart attack which prompted the transplant.

The newspaper campaigned for Terry's family to receive the full pension to which they were entitled.

Mr Walker said in November that three key Government decisions had together made it a successful campaign - firstly, to restore a percentage of Terry's war pension to help the couple raise his bereaved daughter, Kirsty, 13; secondly, to help fund Terry's funeral; and thirdly, to accept that the pension cut was a grave mistake and to issue a formal apology to his family in the House of Lords.