Troubled war veterans leave UK 'sitting on a suicide timebomb'

Published on Wednesday 15 July 2009 22:12

FAILINGS in the care given to British troops who suffer from mental illness are a "national scandal", the Tories have claimed.

Shadow defence secretary Liam Fox warned yesterday that the UK was sitting on a "timebomb" of future post-traumatic stress disorder and suicide among Iraq and Afghanistan veterans.

The Tories highlighted the dangers at a summit in Westminster yesterday.

"We will have a generation of disabled young servicemen," Dr Fox said.

"But what worries me is while we focus on what we can see, we have too little focus on what we cannot see."

Research suggests that veterans aged 18 to 23 are up to three times more likely to become suicides than civilians.

More veterans of the UK's Falklands campaign and first Gulf War are believed to have killed themselves after quitting the forces than died in action.

Some 255 were killed during the Falklands conflict, but an estimated 264 survivors have since taken their own lives.

The Gulf War claimed the lives of 24 British soldiers, but a Government study last year suggested that 169 veterans had died of "intentional self harm" or in circumstances that led to open verdicts at inquests.

Dr Fox said these statistics suggested there was a mental health crisis waiting to happen among current troops.

"If you extrapolate those figures into what has happened in the Balkans and Iraq and Afghanistan, we are sitting on a timebomb," he said.

Defence Minister Kevan Jones said: "The majority of veterans requiring mental health support receive excellent care from the NHS, but we recognise that some find it difficult to discuss their experiences with civilian practitioners.

"We have seen no evidence suggesting we face a 'crisis' of veterans with mental health concerns, but we have commissioned ongoing research from King's College London and the mental health pilots to identify demand early. This will allow us to provide support and resources."