Increased payouts to injured troops may cost MoD £40m

AN OVERHAUL of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme is set to cost the Ministry of Defence between £30 million and £40m, it was disclosed yesterday.

Troops injured in Afghanistan and Iraq will receive increased payouts, backdated to 2005, under changes announced by Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth earlier this month.

One-off awards for injuries will be increased by more than 50 per cent in some cases, while the rule limiting compensation to the first three injuries suffered in a single incident will be scrapped.

The guaranteed lifetime income paid to the most seriously injured servicemen and women, who are unable to carry on working, will also be raised to reflect likely promotions they would have received.

The changes follow a review of the scheme chaired by the former chief of the defence staff, Admiral Lord Boyce.

In a Commons written reply, junior defence minister Kevan Jones said: "The Ministry of Defence has estimated that the additional liabilities arising from the changes proposed in the review would be between around 30m and 40m per annum.

"These liabilities would be met from within existing provision in the Defence Budget."