Gurkha veterans lose latest round in their pensions battle with MoD

GURKHA veterans lost the latest round of their legal battle with the Ministry of Defence over their army pensions yesterday.

A test case which would have affected about 25,000 veterans who retired before 1 July, 1997 was dismissed at the High Court earlier this year.

The British Gurkha Welfare Society then took its case on to the Court of Appeal.

Veterans had asked three judges to rule that the government is acting unlawfully in paying them a third of the income of veterans who retired after the cut-off date and who have parity with UK soldiers.

The judges, sitting in London, rejected their appeal. Afterwards, the Gurkhas vowed to carry on with their fight. The MoD said the pension cut-off date was "justified and proportionate" and not discriminatory on the grounds of age or nationality.

It said that over the course of a retirement "these Gurkha soldiers will receive at least the same amount of pension as their British counterparts".

Rob Buckland MP, treasurer of the all-party parliamentary group on Gurkha welfare, said: "We are very disappointed the Court of Appeal has not seen fit to uphold the rights of these brave Gurkha veterans, who are only asking for a fair pension settlement, equal to that of the British soldiers they fought alongside. We in the all-party parliamentary group will continue to highlight these inequalities and to fight for equal pensions."