BRAVE soldier Dave Benson fought in Tony Blair's war in Iraq - and paid the price when he went on to develop post traumatic stress disorder.

His mother, Sue, revealed today she has been battling in vain ever since to get him the support and help he needs, eventually raising the matter with Government Ministers right up to the Prime Minister.

But she claimed that after she tried to speak directly with Mr Blair during his visit to York, she was searched "like a terrorist" by police - and then warned she would be shot if she tried to get any closer to the New Earswick Folk Hall, where he was speaking.

Sue, of Haxby, said she was lodging a formal complaint with North Yorkshire Police over her treatment, which she says left her shocked and very upset.

"I could not believe it," she said. "I am just an ordinary York mother. Did they think I was going to try to storm the building?" She also asked: "Whatever happened to freedom of speech?" Dave was one of only two British servicemen to win an American Army Medal of Achievement for his work with the American Psychological Operations Unit during the US's push to take Baghdad, but fell ill with post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) shortly after leaving the army, following his return to Britain.

Sue said the symptoms had not gone away, but she had hit a brick wall when trying to get him treatment, with the NHS and MoD both suggesting that the other bore the responsibility for helping him.

She said the NHS was meant to give priority treatment for war pensioners like her son, but this had not happened. He had recently been put on a waiting list in York.

She said she wrote to Mr Blair in June, asking to meet him, saying that her son was a "proud young man and immensely honoured to carry out his duties to the best of his ability while serving his country, which included a tour in Macedonia", but that he had received "no treatment whatsoever" for his illness since leaving the army.

Mr Blair replied personally at length, saying he was "very sorry" to hear of David's problems, but he was afraid a meeting would not be possible - not least because of a problem of confidentiality, saying the MoD was still waiting for his permission to release medical information."

He assured her the Government was taking PTSD very seriously, and added: "Your son is not, I promise, on his own, although I understand that it might look like that to you."

Mrs Benson said she did not accept the Prime Minister's reasons for refusing to meet her, and when she heard last Tuesday that he was at New Earswick, she decided on the spur of the moment to go along with a copy of an article featuring a photo montage of her son near a burning oilfield in Iraq alongside a picture of the Prime Minister.

After telling police what she was doing, she was searched under anti-terrorist legislation for possession of weapons.

"But what really disturbed me was when an officer, whose badge said he was an intelligence officer, told me: "If you go towards the building, you will be shot." It was surreal. I couldn't believe it was happening. I felt it was ironic that my son had fought in the war on terror, and yet when I just wanted to speak to the Prime Minister, I was being treated like a terrorist."

Dave said: "I believe that the reason Blair did not want to speak to my mother was because the Iraq war is a blemish on his career and it's a reminder of that."

A North Yorkshire police spokesman said: "This was a private meeting held by the Joseph Rowntree Foundation for invited guests. The security of the Prime Minister is of paramount importance and the policing operation is geared to ensuring his personal safety.

"At the present time, no formal complaint has been received in the Complaints and Professional Standards Department, but if and when it is received, it will be investigated in accordance with normal procedures."

A spokeswoman for Mr Blair said: "This is a private matter between the Prime Minister and Mrs Benson, and it would not be appropriate to comment further."