Nuclear tests caused cancers, court hears
Lawyers for British, New Zealand, and Fijian military veterans who were exposed to British nuclear test blasts nearly 50 years ago today said they have scientific evidence that shows radiation from the explosions caused cancers among the men.
They also claim that the exposure also resulted in hereditary diseases among the men’s families.
But in a report to the New Zealand government, New Zealand scientists said they could find no clear link between the nuclear blasts in the South Pacific in the 1950s and illnesses in children of the veterans.
British lawyers Mervyn Fudge and David Harris are gathering evidence of major ailments suffered by veterans exposed to the nuclear testing for a lawsuit against the British government.
The two men are being paid by the British Legal Services Commission to bring a class action alleging negligence by the government on behalf of 220 New Zealand, 300 Fijian and 1,000 living former British servicemen exposed to nine nuclear blasts.
The government has said all personnel involved in the tests gave informed consent and denied they were exposed to unsafe radiation levels.
The lawyers told a news conference in New Zealand that scientific evidence showed that many of the cancers suffered by former servicemen, some of whom have died, were a direct result of exposure to radiation. They did not reveal further details.
“We have to prove the causation link, but we believe now the scientific evidence and the assistance of information technology is available to enable that to be proven to a court,” Mr Harris said.
The lawyers hope the government will settle the action by the veterans before it reaches court.
But today, New Zealand veterans’ affairs minister George Hawkins said a report by the Wellington School of Medicine concluded there was “no clear association” between the medical problems of the children of South Pacific nuclear test veterans and their parents’ service.
In compiling the report, the school reviewed existing research and “interpreted that in a New Zealand context”, principal investigator Debbie McLeod said. It conducted no new studies.
